1/5 Libra

1966, Peru (Republic). Gold 1/5 Libra (1/5 Pound) Coin. (Lustrous UNC!) 1.6gm!

Mint Year: 1866 Mint Place: Lima Reference: KM-210. Denomination:  1/5 Pound (1/5 Libra)  Condition: Minor edge marks (scratches), otherwise a nice lustrous UNCirculated coin!  Material: Gold (.917) Diameter: 14mm Weight: 1.6gm

Obverse: Bust of a native Peruvian, wearing earrings and feathered headband right. Legend: VERDAD I JUSTICIA . 1/5 DE LIBRA .   Reverse: Shining sun above shield with coat-of-arms of the Republic of Peru. All within sprays . Date (1966) below. Legend: . REPUBLICA PERUANA LIMA Z . B . R .

For your consideration a beautiful Peruvian gold coin, issued in the trade standard (weight and gold purity) of a British gold pound. A nice and handsome specimen struck at the Lima mint in Peru during 1966.

In the early 19th century, while most of South America was swept by wars of independence, Peru remained a royalist stronghold. As the elite hesitated between emancipation and loyalty to the Spanish Monarchy, independence was achieved only after the military campaigns of José de San Martín and Simón Bolívar. During the early years of the Republic, endemic struggles for power between military leaders caused political instability.National identity was forged during this period, as Bolivarian projects for a Latin American Confederation foundered and a union with Bolivia proved ephemeral. Between the 1840s and 1860s, Peru enjoyed a period of stability under the presidency of Ramón Castilla through increased state revenues from guano exports. However, by the 1870s, these resources had been squandered, the country was heavily indebted, and political in-fighting was again on the rise.