Obverse. Photo © NumisCorner.com
  • 20 Centavos 1955-1971, KM# 440, Mexico
  • 20 Centavos 1955-1971, KM# 440, Mexico
Obverse

Depicts the seal of the United Mexican States.

The Seal of the United Mexican States is a modified version of the national coat of arms, with the addition of the full official name of the country Estados Unidos Mexicanos, in a semi-circular accommodation in the upper part of the seal. Current and past Mexican peso coinage have had the seal engraved on the obverse of all denominations.

The coat of arms depicts a Mexican golden eagle perched on a prickly pear cactus devouring a rattlesnake. To the people of Tenochtitlan this would have strong religious connotations, but to the Europeans, it would come to symbolize the triumph of good over evil (with the snake sometimes representative of the serpent in the Garden of Eden).

ESTADOS UNIDOS MEXICANOS

Reverse

Depicts the Pyramid of the Sun in front of the volcanos Iztaccíhuatl and Popocatépetl in the centre, the radiant Phrygian cap above, value and date below. Mintmark below the cap. Teotihuacan (where the pyramid is located) written at pyramid's base.

Teotihuacan is an ancient Mesoamerican city located in a sub-valley of the Valley of Mexico, which is located in the State of Mexico, 40 kilometres (25 mi) northeast of modern-day Mexico City. Teotihuacan is known today as the site of many of the most architecturally significant Mesoamerican pyramids built in the pre-Columbian Americas. It is the most important and largest pre-Columbian city in Mexico.

The Pyramid of the Sun, largest pyramid in Teotihuacan, that was built about 100 CE. The pyramid rises 216 feet (66 metres) above ground level, and it measures approximately 720 by 760 feet (220 by 230 metres) at its base. It was constructed of about 1,000,000 cubic yards (765,000 cubic metres) of material, including hewed tezontle, a red coarse volcanic rock of the region.

2 LIBERTAD 0
Mo
TEOTIHUACÁN
CENTAVOS
1955

Edge

20 Centavos

Type 2 National Emblem
KM# 440
Characteristics
Material Bronze
Weight 9.9 g
Diameter 28.5 mm
Thickness 2.14 mm
Shape round
Alignment Coin
Mint
Mexican Mint (Mo)

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