Catalog
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| Issuer | Bolivia |
|---|---|
| Year | 1942 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | 50 Centavos (0.50) |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Weight | Log in to see details |
| Diameter | Log in to see details |
| Thickness | Log in to see details |
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| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
| Obverse script | Latin |
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| Reverse description | The caduceus — a winged staff entwined by two confronted serpents — is prominently displayed at center, dividing the denomination numeral '50' to either side. The word CINCUENTA CENTAVOS arcs across the upper field, while a spray of olive branches adorns the lower field. The date 1942 appears in the exergue, and the denomination abbreviation 'C' accompanies the numeral. The overall design is executed in a clean, utilitarian style characteristic of mid-twentieth-century Latin American circulation coinage. |
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| Additional information |
Bolivia shifted this denomination from cupronickel to brass in 1942 as wartime demand for nickel — critical for steel alloys and armor plating — forced dozens of nations to reformulate their minor coinage simultaneously. The substitution was driven by U.S. pressure to redirect strategic metals toward the Allied war effort, a policy coordinated through the Board of Economic Warfare.
The brass composition proved temporary; postwar issues returned to cupronickel.