1st round-the-world voyage

Description

The Royal Spanish Mint makes available to the public the third issue of the collection of four coins dedicated to the 5th Centenary of the first round-the-world voyage.

The coins in this series are minted between 2019 and 2022, one per year, coinciding with the four years of the Magellan and Elcano expedition (1519-1522). All of them are minted in sterling silver and have 8 reals metric, a piece that, due to its wide diffusion and use in Europe, America and the Far East, became the first currency in use worldwide.

In 1519, two hundred and thirty-nine men and five ships set sail from Spain in search of a westward route to the Spice Islands (now called the Molucca Islands in Indonesia). They crossed the Atlantic Ocean, rounded the southern tip of South America through the Strait of Magellan, and then sailed across the Pacific Ocean, reaching the Philippines, where Magellan died in 1521, finally reaching his destination on 6 November 1521. Almost a year later, on 6 September 1522, the Nao Victoria returned to Spain, commanded by Juan Sebastián Elcano and just 17 other sailors. On his return, Emperor Charles V named him "PRIMUS CIRCUMDEDISTI ME" ("the first man to circumnavigate the world").

The first issue of this collection was issued in 2019, dedicating it to the departure, on the reverse of which the ships leaving Spain are shown.

The second, in 2020, is dedicated to The Passage of the Strait of Magellan - Sea of Darkness. This was the name given at the time to the Atlantic Ocean, which was totally inaccessible to navigators. It was thought that beyond it there were evil monsters and mermaids who carried men to the bottom of the sea.

This year's issue presents on the obverse, as in previous years, the images of Juan Sebastián Elcano and Ferdinand Magellan, taken from the portraits of both of them in the Naval Museum in Madrid, together with an image of Charles V.

The reverse shows in colour the depiction of the arrival at the Moluccas (Spice Islands). After crossing the Strait of Magellan, the fleet made the first Pacific crossing in history, stopping in what is now known as the Philippines.

Click here to see enlarged image of the obverse and reverse of this coin.

The coin’s characteristics are described below:

Spanish 8-real coin

  • Face Value: 10 Euro
  • Weight: 27 g
  • Diameter: 40 mm
  • Maximum Mintage: 5,000 units

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