(Vendue pour $9.0)

1874, Colombia (Estados Unidos). Copper-Nickel 1-1/4 Centavo Coin. XF++

Mint Year: 1874
Condition: XF-AU!
Reference: KM-173.
Denomination: 1-1/4 Centavo (un centavo 1 cuarto) - also known as a "pill coin" due to its thick and small size!
Material: Copper-Nickel
Diameter: 12mm
Weight: 1.47gm

Obverse: Inscribed cap of liberty on stick within inncer circle.
Legend: ESTADOS UNIDOS DE COLOMBIA *********

Reverse: Value (C-1-1/4) within inner circle.
Legend: UN CENTAVO 1 CUARTO 1874

The United States of Colombia (Spanish: Estados Unidos de Colombia) was the name adopted in 1861 through the Rionegro Constitution for the Granadine Confederation, modern-day Brazil, Colombia, Panama and Peru, following years of civil war.

The civil war between 1860-1862 resulted in the dissolution of the Granadine Confederation which had been increasingly subjected to efforts by conservatives to centralize rule over the federal states. The liberal leader, General Tomás Cipriano de Mosquera, defeated the conservative government of President Bartolomé Calvo in 1862 and was installed as new leader. Much power was distributed back to the states from the government in Bogotá.

Following the reforms of earlier years, before the creation of the new federation, the liberals aimed to build the United States of Colombia upon a decentralized, free market system. As with previous liberal presidencies, such as de Mosquera's first two terms as president, a tough stance towards the Catholic Church was taken, much to the dismay of conservatives. Land held by the Church was seized and transferred to industrialists and the influence and rights of the Church was severely limited.

In 1871, the drive for modernization and economic reform led to the Colombian peso being pegged to the French franc as part of the international gold standard.

After several years of intermittent civil wars, in 1886 the Colombian Conservative Party led by President Rafael Núñez proclaimed a new constitution of centralist character that abolished the United States of Colombia and created the Republic of Colombia. The conservatives immediately withdrew Colombia from the gold standard and the subsequent increase of printed currency led to troubling inflation levels.
Meanwhile the new state would continue to be plagued by conflict between liberal and conservative factions, which eventually would lead to the secession of Panama in 1903.