The Coins of the Venezuelan venezolano circulated between 1874 and 1897. On June 11, 1873, the government ordered subsidiary silver coins of 5, 10, 20, and 50 centésimos de venezolano from Paris. An order for gold coins was placed on September 16, 1874, originally for pieces of 1, 5, 10, and 20 venezolanos, the 20-venezolano gold piece to be called the Bolívar. This order was subsequently altered to a silver 1 venezolano and a gold 5 venezolanos. The dies for the coins produced in Paris were engraved by Albert Désiré Barre, chief engraver of the Paris Mint (1855–1878).
On June 14, 1876, the Minister of Finance ordered coins of 75% copper and 25% nickel for 1 and 2½ centésimos de venezolano from the United States to replace copper centavos. They were minted at Philadelphia.
Gold 900 fine 5 venezolanos Obv. beaded border; in the field the bust of Bolívar facing right; "BOLÍVAR" left + "LIBERTADOR" right + anchor, bee, "BARRE", "A" [marks of the manager, chief engraver, and Paris Mint, respectively]. Rev. in the field the large national arms; "ESTADOS UNIDOS DE VENEZUELA" above; "GR*8,0645" *1875* LEI 900" below.
Silver 900 fine venezolano Obv. beaded border; in the field the bust of Bolívar facing left; "BOLÍVAR" left + "LIBERTADOR" right + anchor, bee, "BARRE", "A" [marks of the manager, chief engraver, and Paris Mint, respectively]. Rev. in the field the large national arms; "ESTADOS UNIDOS DE VENEZUELA" above, "GRAM.25 *1876* LEI 900" below.
Silver 835 fine 50 centavos 20 centavos 10 centavos 5 centavos Common obv. beaded border; in the field the bust of Bolívar facing left; "BOLÍVAR" left + "LIBERTADOR" right + anchor, bee, "BARRE", "A" [marks of the manager, chief engraver, and Paris Mint, respectively]. Common rev. in the field the national arms (5c with small, others with large arms); "ESTADOS UNIDOS DE VENEZUELA" above, "[weight] *[year]* LEI 835" below. [weight]: 5c, "GR.1,250"; 10c, "GR.2,500"; 20c, "GRAM,5"; 50c, "Gs.12,500".
Copper-nickel 2½ centavos 1 centavo Obv. beaded border; in the field the small national arms; "ESTADOS UNIDOS DE VENEZUELA" above, [year] below. Rev. "[value]" inside laurel wreath. [value]: 1c, "UN | CENTAVO"; 2½c, "DOS | Y MEDIO | CENTAVOS".
+ VenezolanoGold, silver, and cupronickel coins dated 1873–1877 Coin: 0·01 0·025 0·05 0·10 0·20 0·50 1 5 name: puya locha medio real peseta bamba fuerte ----- CuNi CuNi AR 835 AR 835 AR 835 AR 835 AR 900 AV 900 grams 2·500 4·000 1·250 2·500 5·000 12·500 25·000 8·0645 mm: 19 23 15 18 23 30 37 22 1873 0·200 1874 0·800 0·800 0·400 0·200 1875 0·0692 1876 8·000 1·500 0·520 0·280 0·136 0·158 0·035 1877 2·000 0·500
References
. . Venezuela's monetary history, including a summary of coinage legislation. Detailed information, with images, of all Venezuelan coins and paper money, regularly updated.