Zamora Medal (1808)

This 1808 medal commemorates the proclamation of Fernando VII in Zamora, in present-day Michoacán. The year was one of deep crisis: after the Mutiny of Aranjuez and the Abdications of Bayonne imposed by Napoleon, New Spain swore fidelity to Fernando VII in his absence, refusing to recognize the intruder Joseph Bonaparte.

The oaths of 1808 were an act of resistance as much as of loyalty. By proclaiming their captive king, the cities of New Spain affirmed their belonging to the legitimate Spanish monarchy in the face of the French usurpation.

Zamora was an agricultural town in the fertile western Michoacán, a region that would very soon become a stage for the insurgency. These proclamation medals capture the instant before the earthquake: a viceroyalty swearing allegiance to a prisoner monarch without imagining that the orphanhood of royal power, barely two years later, would ignite the struggle for Independence.

The Zamora medal of 1808 is a silver piece struck in the final years of viceregal Mexico, a small metallic testament to the city it commemorates and to the medallic art of its time. At just 26.9 millimeters in diameter and 6.77 grams in weight, it is the kind of piece that fits in the palm of your hand yet carries centuries of history.

Being silver, its value has a clear floor: the precious-metal content of its 6.77 grams. Above that floor, what drives it up is condition, the small size of the issue, and interest in the theme it commemorates. A piece with no wear and its original case is worth considerably more than one that has been handled or aggressively cleaned.

To identify and value it, it helps to confirm the metal by weighing it to estimate its fine-silver content, to read the legend and the motif carefully as they define its historical interest, to check that it has no scratches or cleaning and keeps its natural patina, and to look for the case and the certificate if it ever had them, since they add collector value. In the specialized catalog, this piece is referenced as Grove, Medals of México, I #F-208. Explore more pieces in the Mexican numismatics catalog and learn to read the marks in the guide on how to identify Mexican mints.