8 Escudos – Mexico

Following independence in 1821, Mexico inherited a chaotic and fragmented monetary system. The Spanish colonial regime had left a legacy of both official coinage—primarily silver pesos and gold escudos minted at the Mexico City Mint—and a vast array of debased and counterfeit coins that circulated widely. Furthermore, the decade-long War of Independence had severely disrupted mining, the economic lifeblood that supplied precious metals for coinage, leading to widespread shortages of sound currency. This created an environment where multiple forms of money, including foreign coins (especially Spanish and British), local tokens, and credit instruments, all competed unevenly across the regions of the young nation.

In response, the federal government under President Guadalupe Victoria enacted the Coinage Act of 1824, a foundational attempt to assert national sovereignty and economic order. This law formally established the Mexican peso as the national currency, defined on a bimetallic standard linked to both silver and gold. Crucially, it continued the Spanish practice of basing the peso on the "real," with eight silver reales equaling one peso. The iconic silver 8-real coin, known internationally as the "Mexican dollar" for its consistent high purity and weight, became the cornerstone of the system. The act also introduced new national symbols, including the iconic Liberty Cap design, on the coinage to replace old Spanish imagery.

Despite this legislative effort, the currency situation in 1824 remained one of transition and challenge. The new federal coins entered circulation slowly, unable to immediately replace the sheer volume of older, mixed-quality currency. The chronic shortage of small change persisted, hindering daily commerce. Most significantly, the government's severe fiscal deficits, stemming from a weak economy and large debts, prevented the establishment of a central bank or the issuance of stable paper money. Thus, while 1824 marked the official birth of a national Mexican currency, its authority and uniformity would take decades to fully materialize amidst ongoing political instability and economic hardship.