100 Pesos Hatuey

Issued in 1991 as Cuba's hard-currency export coinage, this piece was never intended for domestic circulation — the Cuban peso was non-convertible, and gold coin ownership by ordinary citizens remained effectively prohibited. The Banco Nacional produced these specifically for foreign buyers and numismatic markets, generating the convertible currency the regime needed following the collapse of Soviet subsidies.

Hatuey was a Taíno chieftain executed by the Spanish in 1512 — reportedly burning at the stake rather than accept baptism. He had already fled Hispaniola to warn Cuba's indigenous population of the Spanish advance.