Venezuela 1873-A 50 centavos
This specimen was lot 8434 in Stack's Bowers NYINC sale (New York, January 2022), where it sold for $384. The catalog description[1] noted, "VENEZUELA. 50 Centavos, 1873-A. Paris Mint. NGC VF-25. The first year of this elusive three-year issue, this piece is as wholesome as one might hope for the grade, with original deep gray tone over the surfaces and no marks that distract the eye. A coin that is sure to attract strong collector attention, as finer examples -- when they appear -- escalate in price rather dramatically. From the Centuria Collection." Venezuela adopted a complete decimal coinage system in 1871, with 100 centavos = 1 venezuelano. By 1879, denominations were renamed centimos and bolivares, such that 100 centimos = 1 bolivar. The peso sized coin was equivalent to five bolivares. The official title of the country from 1864 was 'Estados Unidos de Venezuela', a name it would carry until 1953, when the constitution mandated a return to the name 'Republica de Venezuela'. The silver issues did not possess the name of the denomination. Instead, the weight of the coin and silver fineness is listed on the side with the coat of arms. This type was struck 1873-76 but never issued again, being superseded by the two bolivares.
Recorded mintage: 200,000.
Specification: 12.50 g, 0.835 fine silver, 0.3356 oz ASW.
Catalog reference: KM-Y15; Stohr-35.
- Michael, Thomas, and Tracy L. Schmidt, Standard Catalog of World Coins, 1801-1900, 9th ed., Iola, WI: Krause Publications, 2019.
- Stohr, Tomas, El Circulante en la Capitania General de Venezuela, Caracas, Banco Central de Venezuela, 1998.
- [1]Orsini, Matt, Kyle Ponterio and Jeremy Bostwick, The 2022 NYINC Sale: World and Ancient Coins, featuring the Mark and Lottie Salton Collection and the Pat Johnson Collection, Costa Mesa, CA: Stack's Bowers LLC, 2021.
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