Bill writes: I have looked at many sites for info on this coin…was sold to me in Mexico as 18 c in the 80s. it’s about 3/4″ weighs aprox 4 grams ….. maybe you can identify….. Thank you.
It appears to be a modern token made of base metal with gold plating. It depicts Juan Carlos the First, since 1975 the King of Spain.
Obviously based on the 50 pesetas 1975. At that time, there were two factions in Spain. The Francoists trusted Juan Carlos to continue Franco’s nationalist policies after his death in 1975. He gave them no reason to think otherwise. This medal was undoubtedly issued by Francoists. The opposition were the Carlists, supporting Carlos Hugo, a reactionary conservative.
The medal is interesting, because Juan Carlos, once firmly in power, enabled democracy and withheld support from an attempt by renegade officers to install a new military dictatorship.
It is not possible to assess the metallic content of the medal from a picture. Maybe a friendly jeweller can help.
On the 50 pesetas, the shield lies on the order and chain of the golden fleece as well as a cross of sticks (not sceptres, as KM says).* On the medal, the chain and order are there, but the cross of sticks is not. The cross of sticks is the symbol of the Carlist movement. It looks like the symbol was removed in opposition of the Carlist claim to the Spanish throne.
