A man breaking down a barracks wall: the reverse of this 500 colones captures the gesture with which Costa Rica became a country without an army. On 1 December 1948 José Figueres Ferrer, head of the Founding Junta of the Second Republic, symbolically broke the wall of the Bellavista barracks and announced the dissolution of the armed forces.

The legend «75 AÑOS DE LA ABOLICIÓN DEL EJÉRCITO» and the dates «1948-2023» frame the scene, and above the dates runs a line of microtext readable only under magnification. As the Central Bank explains, the image stands for the rejection of militarism and violence in favour of democracy and peaceful development.

The 1948 decision was enshrined in the 1949 Constitution, which left the state only police forces to keep internal order. The aim was to prevent coups, strengthen democracy and redirect former military spending to education, health and social welfare.

The coin entered circulation on 4 December 2023 with a mintage of 2.5 million, the third in the «Hitos de nuestra historia» line after the bicentenary of independence and the 175th anniversary of the Republic. The shared obverse turns «500» into «BCCR» when tilted, and five raised bars allow the value to be identified by touch.

For a collection on peace, democracy or 20th-century history, it is a coin with a subject few countries could put on their money. Uncirculated (UNC): no traces of circulation, mint lustre preserved.

Would you like to complete the whole series? See the other issues in the VPcoins catalogue.