CARLOS III

Nueva Guatemala onzas. During the reign of Ferdinand VI, Guatemala finally began producing coinage using the screw press, in compliance with the 1751 decree. However, it wasn’t until mid-1754 that the first pieces struck with the new method were produced. Under Charles III, the minting of onzas continued, with the 1768 issue—already discussed—being particularly rare. A series of key events followed: first, the major monetary reform ordered by the king in 1772; and second, a series of earthquakes in the latter half of 1773 that destroyed the old city of Santiago de los Caballeros de Guatemala. This disaster prompted the abandonment of the old city and the establishment of a new one, Nueva Guatemala de la Asunción, to which the mint was also relocated. From that point on, the new mint would mark its coins with the initials “NG.” Naturally, the onzas produced at the new mint featured the updated type, with the portrait that would eventually be used across all Spanish and American mints. However, Guatemala was the penultimate mint to adopt it for its gold coins. The first onza from the new mint was issued in 1778, and the next four emissions occurred during the 1780s, all of them being very scarce.