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40 Centésimos de Real Sol de Cabellera/Haired Sun
| Issuer | Republic of Uruguay |
|---|---|
| Year | 1844 |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| In circulation to | 14 July 1902 |
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| Obverse description | Central device features a radiant sun with a human face, known as the 'Sol de Caballera' or Haired Sun, with long straight rays alternating with wavy rays emanating from the central facial motif. The design is executed in high relief against a flat field. The circular legend REPUBLICA ORIENTAL DEL URUGUAY runs along the upper periphery, with the date 1844 displayed in the lower exergual area flanked by small decorative stars. The engraving, attributed to Agustín Jouve, reflects the neoclassical style typical of mid-nineteenth-century Latin American coinage produced at the Paris Mint. |
|---|---|
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| Obverse lettering | REPUBLICA ORIENTAL DEL URUGUAY 1844 (Translation: Oriental Republic of Uruguay 1844) |
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| Additional information |
Uruguay's early copper coinage was produced under extremely difficult logistical circumstances — the young republic lacked its own mint entirely and contracted production abroad, with these large-flan pieces struck in France. The "Sol de Cabellera" type takes its collector name from an unofficial but immediately recognizable description, and the 1844 date places this issue squarely in the administration of President Fructuoso Rivera's second term, a period of intermittent civil conflict between the Colorados and Blancos that would escalate into the Guerra Grande by 1839 — a war that had already been grinding for five years by this coin's minting.
At 37 grams, these circulated hard in a cash-starved economy. Smooth-edged survivors with full flan integrity are genuinely uncommon.