25 Centavos José Martí

Issued to mark the centennial of José Martí's birth, this coin was part of a broader commemorative program authorized by the Batista government — an irony that was not lost on Cuban nationalists, given Martí's lifelong opposition to authoritarianism. The entire 1953 silver series was struck at the Philadelphia Mint under contract, as Cuba lacked domestic minting capacity for silver coinage at the time.

Centennial pieces saw genuine circulation, which keeps problem-free mid-grade survivors harder to source than mintage figures alone would suggest.