5 Pesos Santa Maria

Cuba's commemorative silver program of the late 1970s and early 1980s was largely designed for hard currency export — these pieces were never intended for domestic circulation on the island, where the peso convertible system kept foreign-denominated specie out of ordinary hands. The program was administered through CUBACOIN, the state export agency, and distributed primarily through European and Latin American numismatic dealers.

The Santa María series references Columbus's 1492 voyage, timed loosely ahead of the quincentenary decade of promotion that would culminate in the 1992 anniversary issues from mints worldwide.