Philippines 1918-S 5 centavos
This type was struck for the Philippines 1903-28. The early dates (1903-08) are from the Philadelphia mint, the middle dates (1916-19) are from the San Francisco mint and the later dates (1920-21, 1925-28) are from the Manila mint. The Manila mint struck reduced size five centavos 1930-35 (KM 175). In 1937, with the inauguration of the Commonwealth, the reverse was redesigned. This third type (KM 180) was struck at Manila 1937-41 and at San Francisco in 1944-45. Many of the dates are rare, especially in nice condition, but the 1918-S is a better date. All were demonetized by the Philippine government in the late 1960's when the currency was reformed.
The second specimen is an example of a rare error for 1918, where the obverse die was muled with the reverse die intended for the twenty centavos. The error is subtle, as the two dies are very similar, but careful study reveals the shield of the mule to be wider than the normal issue. This mule is the most valuable five centavos in the Philippine series. A similar error occurred in reverse on the 1928 twenty centavos.
Recorded mintage: 2,780,000.
Specification: 5 g, copper-nickel, 21.3 mm diameter.
Catalog reference: KM 164.
- Michael, Thomas, and Tracy L. Schmidt, Standard Catalog of World Coins, 1901-2000, 47th ed., Iola, WI: Krause Publications, 2019.
- Ganzon de Legarda, Angelita, Piloncitos to Pesos, A Brief History of Coinage in the Philippines, Manila: Bancom Development Corporation, 1976.
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