GOURDE: COIN OF HAITI
1 gourde, 2003: Republic of Haiti
1 GOURDE.
LIBERTÉ - ÉGALITÉ - FRATERNITÉ: the national motto of the Republic of Haiti and France "Liberty - Equality - Fraternity".
Coat of arms of Haiti: national flags, palm tree, cannons, drum, bugles, cannonballs and ship anchors, liberty cap (symbol of freedom); the ribbon bears the motto "L'Union fait la force" (French for "Unity makes strength").
RÉPUBLIQUE D'HAÏTI: Republic of Haiti.
Citadelle Laferrière: a large fortress built in 1804-1817 by order of King Henri Christophe (key leader in the Haitian Revolution and the only monarch of the Kingdom of Haiti) on top of a 1.000-meter mountain in northern Haiti; is the largest fortification in the Western Hemisphere.
Royal Mint (United Kingdom).
Coin shape: equilateral curve heptagon.
- Brass plated steel: 23 mm - 6.34 g
- Reference price: 1$
COIN GOURDE — WHERE & WHEN (coins catalog: by names & emitents)
- REPUBLIC OF HAITI (1881-...): gourde = 100 centime
GOURDE as coin name.
Gourde (Haitian Creole "Goud") — official currency and coin of Haiti (an island country in the Caribbean Sea). Divided into 100 centimes. It was introduced shortly after the declaration of independence of Haiti from France (1804), namely, in 1813 instead of the Haitian livre.
Initially, gourdes were issued exclusively in the form of banknotes (coins were represented only by centimes). The first gourde as a coin appeared in 1881 and was minted from silver.
Coins of denominations of 50 centimes alongside with 1 and 5 gourdes are common in Haiti. Jubilee/commemorative coins of higher denominations are also regularly issued.
The name of the currency comes from the Spanish word "gordo", which in translation means "thick or heavy" in the context of "pesos gordos": the unofficial name of the Spanish pesos (also known as "the piece of eight" or "Spanish dollar"), which gained significant distribution in the territory of the French colonies in the West Indies several centuries ago.
