The real was the currency of Argentina until 1881. From 1822, it was subdivided into 10 ''décimos''. The

sol Sol or SOL may refer to: Astronomy * The Sun Currency * SOL Project, a currency project in France * French sol, or sou * Argentine sol * Bolivian sol, the currency of Bolivia from 1827 to 1864 * Peruvian sol, introduced in 1991 * Peruvian sol ...

was also issued during this period and was equal to the real, whilst the

peso The peso is the monetary unit of several countries in the Americas, and the Philippines. Originating in the Spanish Empire, the word translates to "weight". In most countries the peso uses the same sign, "$", as many currencies named " doll ...

was worth 8 reales and the escudo was worth 16 reales.

History

Spanish colonial real The silver real ( es, real de plata) was the currency of the Spanish colonies in America and the Philippines. In the seventeenth century the silver real was established at two billon reals (''reales de vellón'') or sixty-eight ''maravedís'' ...

es circulated alone until 1813, when Argentina began issuing its own coins. From 1820, paper money was also issued. In 1826, the peso moneda corriente and peso fuerte were introduced in paper money only. In 1854, coins were issued denominated in centavos. However, decimalization did not occur until in 1881, when the real was replaced by the

peso moneda nacional The peso moneda nacional (symbol: m$n) was the currency of Argentina from 5 November 1881 to 1 January 1970, the date in which the ''peso ley 18.188'' was issued to the Argentine public. It was subdivided into 100 centavos, with the argentino w ...

at a rate of 8 reales to 1 peso.

Coins

Silver coins were issued in the name of the "Río de la Plata Province" in denominations of , 1, 2, 4 and 8 reales and , 1, 2, 4 and 8 soles, whilst gold coins (87.5%) were issued in denomination of 1, 2, 4 and 8 escudos. The state of

Buenos Aires Buenos Aires ( or ; ), officially the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires ( es, link=no, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires), is the capital and primate city of Argentina. The city is located on the western shore of the Río de la Plata, on South ...

issued its own coins starting in 1822, denominated in reales and ''décimos'', with 10 décimos = 1 real. Coins were issued in denominations of 1, 5, 10 and 20 décimos, together with , (actually shown as ), 1 and 2 reales. They were all minted of copper. Other provinces issued coins denominated in reales (silver) and escudos (gold): Córdoba, Entre Ríos,

La Rioja La Rioja () is an autonomous community and province in Spain, in the north of the Iberian Peninsula. Its capital is Logroño. Other cities and towns in the province include Calahorra, Arnedo, Alfaro, Haro, Santo Domingo de la Calzada, an ...

, Mendoza, Salta,

Santiago del Estero Santiago del Estero (, Spanish for ''Saint-James-Upon-The-Lagoon'') is the capital of Santiago del Estero Province in northern Argentina. It has a population of 252,192 inhabitants, () making it the twelfth largest city in the country, with a surf ...

and Tucumán. Since these coins were scarce, it was common to use silver coins from other countries (especially Bolivian soles). In 1854, coins were issued in the name of the "

Argentine Confederation The Argentine Confederation (Spanish: ''Confederación Argentina'') was the last predecessor state of modern Argentina; its name is still one of the official names of the country according to the Argentine Constitution, Article 35. It was the name ...

" in denominations of 1, 2 and 4 centavo coins. As notes above, this issue did not lead to full decimalization.

Banknotes

In 1820, the Government of the Province of

introduced notes in denominations of 5, 10, 20, 40, 50 and 100 pesos. These were followed in 1823 by 1, 3 and 5 pesos. The ''Banco de Buenos Ayres'' began issuing notes in 1822 in denominations of 20, 50, 100, 200, 500 and 1000 pesos. 1 and 2 peso notes followed in 1823.

General references

* * {{Portal bar, Argentina, Money, Numismatics Currencies of Argentina Modern obsolete currencies Sun on coins