Fiesta de Covadonga Medal (1905)

The Fiesta de Covadonga was celebrated by the Spanish community residing in Mexico, in honor of the Virgin of Covadonga, patron of Asturias and a symbol of Spanish identity. The Spanish colony was numerous and influential in the commerce of the Porfiriato.

This 1905 brass medal commemorates one of those festivals of the Asturian and Spanish colony in Mexico. These events reinforced the immigrant community's ties to its homeland and to its religious traditions.

The piece is a record of the cosmopolitanism of Porfirian society and of the weight of foreign colonies in the country's economic and social life. It documents how Spanish immigrants kept their devotions and celebrations alive in early 20th-century Mexico.

The Fiesta de Covadonga medal, struck in 1905, celebrates one of the Asturian-rooted festivities most cherished by the Spanish community in Mexico at the start of the twentieth century. It is a brass piece that combines the appeal of the commemorative with the charm of an era marked by the great festivals and European colonies in the country.

Made of brass, it measures 33.12 millimeters in diameter and weighs 13.82 grams. Its value comes not from the metal but from what it celebrates: the commemorated event, its age within the 1821-1910 period, and demand among collectors interested in this subject. Condition and the rarity of the issue are what truly set the price.

To value it, it helps to confirm that it is brass, read the legend and motif that refer to the Fiesta de Covadonga, check that the piece retains a natural patina with no scratches or harsh cleaning, and look for the original case or certificate if it ever had them, since they add collector value. Explore more pieces in the Mexican numismatics catalog and learn to read the marks in the guide on how to identify Mexican mints. In the specialized catalog, this medal is referenced in Grove, Medals of México, II.