50 Bolívares Armadillo

Venezuela issued this coin in 1975 as part of a conservation series promoted under the government of Carlos Andrés Pérez, whose first administration coincided with the oil boom that gave the country unusual fiscal latitude to fund commemorative programs. The giant armadillo (Priodontes maximus) depicted was already under pressure from habitat loss in the Orinoco basin, and the coin predates Venezuela's formal ratification of CITES by several years.

At 35 grams of .925 silver, production costs were substantial, and the series was aimed squarely at the international collector market rather than domestic circulation.