There seems to be some confusion about silver Mexican Onzas.. Which ones are Onzas and which ones are Libertads? Let me see if I can clear that up a bit. Both carry the words "una onza pura plata" and are bullion pieces. Onza is Spanish for ounce and Plata is silver, so both entities contain silver. There are other Onza bullion coins: gold and platinum, but I'm only covering the silver ones. The original Onzas were (and are) silver medallic bullion coins. They were first minted in 1949 and again in '78, '79 and '80. The obverse features a coin press and the reverse a balance scales. In this series there are no fractional denominations and no multiple denominations. All of these contain one full ounce of silver. No proofs were struck. This image courtesy Coin Gallery: http://worldcoingallery.com/countries/coin.php?image=img12/121-M49&desc=Mexico%20kmM49%201%20Onza%20(1978-1980)%20Coin%20Press%20and%20Scales The Libertad silver series began in 1991 and continues to be struck. There are fractional denominations of 1/20, 1/10, 1/4 and 1/2 Onza bullion coins as well as 1, 2, and 5 ounce pieces. The fractionals and the one and two ounce pieces feature the Mexican coat of arms on the obverse and the beautiful Winged Liberty on the reverse (thus the designation Libertad). The obverse of the 5 ounce features the Mexican eagle in the center of the coin surrounded by obsolete versions of the Mexican coat of arms. The Winged Victory graces the reverse. Proofs were struck. This image courtesy Coin Gallery: http://worldcoingallery.com/countries/coin.php?image=img12/121-494&desc=Mexico%20km494%201%20Onza%20(1982-1991)%20Libertad In 2002 and 2004 silver Libertads were struck in a denomination of a Kilo (32.15 troy ounces) It carries the current Mexican emblem centered on the obverse, encircled by obsolete coats of arms. The Winged Victory predominates the reverse. In 2002 prooflikes and proofs were struck. In 2004 only prooflikes were struck. The following link is to a website whose owner retails Mexican Libertads. If you scroll down ,you will come across some 2002 and 2005 Libertads: http://www.mexicancoinsandmore.com/servlet/the-Silver-Libertads/Categories Did you emjoy this trivia? Clinker
CLINKER, Absolutely!!! PLEASE.....keep this trivia coming! It is so much fun to read! I love it! swick
Great Info! I thought that the Libertad series started in 1982. From 1982-1991 they had this design on reverse and in 1991 Mexican mint redesigned the reverse with this one (One can see the difference in word 'Onza' and 'Plata Pure' from type 1 of same date) In 1996, the mint changed the size of these libertads with the same obverse design And then in 2000, they changed the obverse design with 10 obsolete obverse eagle designs Regards Ballabh Garg
1998 is the lowest mintage and rarest date for this series. Here is a 5 Oz libertad for this date Regards Ballabh Garg
So I have a question. Why would a grading company slab a coin with the reverse side up? If the Lady is truly the reverse why is she on the same side as the label?
Ballabh,that 'Eros' type is still being struck today.I saw one dated 2001 late last year,but my boss sold it before we even had the 21st. Century Krause catalogue come in. That is a very nice Proof Onza you've got there. Aidan.
A bigger question will be "Why a grading company label a 1993 dated coin with 1995?" Well, if they can't find the date properly on a coin, how can you expect them to know which one is obverse or reverse? My knowledge on Mexican coin is limited but the fact is that eagle side is treated as obverse for all Mexican coins. Regards, Ballabh Garg
By 'Eros' Type, do you mean Libertads? This is the first time I am hearing this name for Libertads. Yes, this type is still being struck and I just got 2007 dated libertad for my set. Regards Ballabh Garg
Since I only wanted to present a "trivia" item on the difference berween the Onzas and Libertads I purposely omitted some details, but perhaps I should included the ones you mentioned, so I want to thank you for you addendum about the Onzas. Clinker
The Piccadilly Circus statue is Eros indeed. But the Angel of the Independence on Paseo de la Reforma (the one holding the wreath) is much bigger ... and definitely more feminine. Christian
Yes, Paseo de la Reforma is a big wide street in downtown Mexico (City), somewhat like the Avenue des Champs-Elysées in Paris. And the angel (Victoria Alada, ie. Winged Victory) is on top of a column that can be seen from pretty far away. The type on the Libertad coins that holds the wreath is pretty much the statue that you see on Reforma. Hard to tell for me whether the other Libertad figure is supposed to be the same one or a more allegorical one ... Christian
