1960 Cuba 5 Centavos!

One of my now many Cuban coins. Many may be a little strong when compared to my American collection, but I do seem to be finding them more often. I got this for a slight bargain at $0.20 whereas it is valued at $0.75. It has the lowest mintage of the three years this design/composition was struck and is worth substantially more than the 1961 version in higher grades.

1953 Cuba 1 Centavo!

 Guess who got two Cuban coins for $1.00? Me! I bought this and a 5 Centavo coin for my Cuban coin collection. So now I have five instead of three! I'll admit I overpaid some, but Cuban coins are so few and far between, I couldn't pass them up. This was a commemorative issued for the centennial of the birth of Jose Marti, possibly the most patriotic Cuban ever to live.

Cuba made their coins at par with the USD from 1916-1961. 1 Gram of copper-nickel was equal to 1 bronze U.S. cent. Cuban cents were struck on  1 gram copper-nickel blanks until WWII came along and created the need for blanks of the same size, but made of brass. This was made on one of the brass blanks and is therefore smaller than, but was equal to, the U.S. cent. It is worth $0.15 in numismatic value, $0.01 in official exchange rate, and $0.0004 in actual exchange rate.

¡Viva la Revolución!

One of my three coins from Cuba. Two are common, base metal coins and this one is 90% silver. It was made back when America and Cuba were allies after America "freed" them from Spain and the Cuban Peso and USD were made at par with each other. Does the "VEINTE" on the reverse ring a bell? It's close to the Starbucks size "VENTI" and both mean twenty. So this is a twenty centavo, or cent, coin. 1/5 dollars are more prevalent in Europe which, combined with tradition, is the reason for the denomination. This is still very evident in Europe with the Euro using 20 Cent coins and the Pound having 20 Pence coins rather than quarters. Tradition carries on in Cuba, despite the Communist takeover, and 20 Cent coins are still used. They are still made at par with the USD for accounting reasons, but in reality are worth less. This coin is worth about $9.00.

Cuban 5 Centavos!

Here is my first and only Cuban coin. To be honest I know nothing about it other than what the words mean in English which is REPUBLICA DE CUBA= Republic of Cuba, cinco centavos= 5 (five) cents, and Casa Colonial= Colonial House. I got this, some other coins, and, of course, cash as a trade for some coins I was looking to sell last year. It is worth about $0.10 in USD.
(NOTE: The translations above are rough. I do sell but ONLY on MY local Craigslist. If you can somehow track me down and want to buy or sell I will give it consideration.)