Miguel Hidalgo Medal (1898)

Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla, the priest of Dolores who launched the struggle for Independence in 1810, is Mexico's great founding hero. His Grito de Dolores marks the beginning of the movement that led the nation to its freedom, and his memory was venerated with special fervor.

This 1898 bronze medal commemorates him within the Porfirian cult of the national heroes. During the Porfiriato, Porfirio Díaz exalted the figure of Hidalgo and the insurgents as the foundation of national identity and of his regime's legitimacy.

Engraved by A. Moral, the piece belongs to the category of figures. It is testimony to the central role Hidalgo held in Mexican civic memory, a cult that would reach its high point in the Centennial celebrations of 1910.

The 1898 Miguel Hidalgo medal pays tribute to the father of Independence with the work of engraver A. Moral, in a bronze piece whose value arises from what it commemorates, not from the metal itself. At 25.17 millimeters in diameter and 7.85 grams, it is a small object but charged with historical symbolism, much prized among those who collect medals of 19th-century Mexico.

Being a bronze medal, its price is dictated by factors different from those of a silver or gold coin: the event it celebrates, its age within the 1821-1910 era, and demand among collectors of the theme. Condition is decisive. A piece free of scratches or harsh cleaning, with its natural patina intact, will always be worth more. And if it retains the original case or certificate, it adds even more collector value.

Explore more pieces in the Mexican numismatics catalog and learn to read the marks in the how to identify Mexican mints guide. For the collector, this medal is cataloged as Grove, Medals of México, II #P-216b.