I.D. & info help needed... big photos (Peru sol w/counterstamp)

DennisH

Hi everyone. I've had this coin for years and can't even remember why or how I got it. All I know is it's a Peruvian 1 Sol with apparently a Guatemalan counterstamp. I've always wondered about a few things:
-- why did Guatemala counterstamp coins from another country?
-- did they do it just in 1869?
-- is this a silver coin like it appears to be?
-- are these common?

Thanks in advance for any information, which will be very much appreciated.

mrpotatoheadd

Krause says:

By 1894, foreign coins had become so prevalent that on August 10, the government authorized their counter-stamping at the mint, with official 1/2 real dies of 1894, to legitimize their circulation.

The counterstamp was used on coins from Chile, Brazil, Guatemala (yes, that's correct), Honduras, Peru and El Salvador. The date on the counterstamp is 1894 on all the varieties, but the host coins are of various other dates.

Yours appears to be KM224, over Peru KM196. It contains .7234 oz. of 0.900 fine silver. The catalog value is $20.00/F, $30.00/VF and $45.00/XF.

DennisH

Thanks very much mrpotatoheadd!

Hyperion

looks familiar