1760 Silver Medal Betts-461, Guatemala

Coin Details

Auction Record

$504 VG Details 04-28-2022 Heritage Auctions

Description

This 1760 silver medal (Betts-461) is a proclamation medal from Guatemala celebrating the accession of Charles III to the Spanish throne. The Captaincy General of Guatemala was one of Spain's most important colonial administrative units in Central America, and the proclamation ceremony was a major civic event demonstrating loyalty to the new sovereign. The medal's design typically features the royal portrait on the obverse and local civic or heraldic imagery on the reverse, creating a unique hybrid of metropolitan authority and colonial identity. The quality of die engraving on the finest Betts medals rivals the best European artistic production of their respective periods, with master medalists achieving remarkable detail in portraits, landscapes, and battle scenes. Guatemalan proclamation medals are among the most collectible in the Spanish colonial series due to their relative scarcity compared to Mexican or Peruvian issues and the artistic quality of their engraving.

Rarity Notes

Original 1760 silver. Guatemalan proclamation medal. Scarce in the broader market.

Cross References

Betts-461; Guatemala; Charles III proclamation 1760; Spanish colonial Central America