Owner Comments:
This coin was was minted by The Franklin Mint under the authorization of the Central Bank of the Philippines. Three varieties of this coin were struck: Proof, Brilliant Uncirculated, and Matte. This particular coin is of the BU variety, which is very similar to a proof coin except that all of the surfaces (field and relief) are equally smooth and mirror-like. Those unfamiliar with these Franklin Mint varieties often mistake these BU coins for proofs, which differ in that the relief is frosted.
The obverse features the bust of Dr. Jose Rizal, a Filipino nationalist during the tail end of the Spanish colonial period of the Philippines. He is widely considered to be one of the greatest heroes of the Philippines. To the right of the bust is the coin's denomination, 1 Piso, and below is his name, Jose Rizal. On the coin's top is the country's name, "REPUBLIKA NG PILIPINAS".
The reverse bears the country’s coat of arms in the center. It features the eight-rayed sun of the Philippines with each ray representing the eight provinces which were placed under martial law during the Philippine Revolution (1896-1898.) The three five-pointed stars represent the country's primary geographic regions (Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao.) On the dexter (left) side of the shield is the North American bald eagle of the United States, its left talon grasping an olive branch and the right talon grasping three spears, denoting peace and war. On the sinister (right) side is the lion rampant of the coat of arms of the Kingdom of León (part of a united Spain from 1479). Both the eagle and the lion represent the country's colonial past. Beneath the shield is a scroll with the inscription " RUPUBLIKA NG PILIPINAS”. Around the coin are the words "ANG BAGONG LIPUNAN" on top, which is Pilipino for "The New Society". On the bottom is the issuing bank's name, "BANGKO SENTRAL NG PILIPINAS". The coin's date, 1975, is divided by the shield.
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This is a perfect coin as the grade indicates. It doesn’t show any trace of wear, handling, scratches or contact with other coins. Although it isn’t quite captured by the camera, the coin’s strike is sharp, and it radiates full original luster, with exceptional eye appeal. This type of coin is not that common and is usually only found in the Special Uncirculated set, but once in a while it becomes available for auction or sale by itself. Due to the low mintage, this coin is priced higher than other piso coins of the series. I had this coin in my collection and decided to have it graded so I could showcase it in the registry. I was pleasantly surprised and delighted by the grade it received, which, as of this writing, is Top Pop (1/0). This coin also has the distinction of being the first of its kind to be NGC-certified at this grade.
⚙️ Coin Specifications and Information
Composition: Copper-Nickel
Weight: 9.5000g
Diameter: 29mm
Edge: Reeded
Alignment: ⬆️ ⬆️
Mintage: 37,000
KM# 209.1
📆 This Year in Philippine History
On October 1, 1975, the “Thrilla in Manila” boxing match between Muhammad Ali and Joe Frazier III was held at the Araneta Coliseum in Quezon City, Philippines. This bout was the third and final boxing match between WBA, WBC, and The Ring heavyweight champion Muhammad Ali, and Joe Frazier, for the heavyweight championship of the world. The venue was temporarily renamed as the "Philippine Coliseum" for this match. Ali won by technical knockout (TKO) after Frazier's chief second, Eddie Futch, asked the referee to stop the fight after the 14th round. The contest's name is derived from Ali's rhyming boast that the fight would be "a killa and a thrilla and a chilla, when I get that gorilla in Manila."
The bout is almost universally regarded as one of the best and most brutal fights in boxing history, and was the culmination of a three-bout rivalry between the two fighters that Ali won, 2–1. Some sources estimate the fight was watched by 1 billion viewers, including 100 million viewers watching the fight on closed-circuit theatre television, and 500,000 pay-per-view buys on HBO home cable television.
In order to accommodate an international viewing audience, the fight took place at 10:00 a.m. local time. Though it served the business interests of the fight, it was detrimental to the fighters. Ali's ring physician, Ferdie Pacheco, said "At 10:00 a.m. the stickiness of the night was still there, but cooked by the sun. So, what you got is boiling water for atmosphere." Denise Menz, who was part of Frazier's contingent, said of the conditions inside the aluminum-roofed Philippine Coliseum: "It was so intensely hot, I've never before felt heat like that in my life. Not a breath of air—nothing. And that was sitting there. Can you imagine being in the ring? I don't know how they did it." Frazier estimated the ring temperature at more than 120 °F (49 °C), including heat from TV lights. Ali said that he lost 5 pounds (2.3 kg) during the fight due to dehydration.
When the fighters and their cornermen met at the center of the ring for the referee's instructions, Ali continued his verbal assault on Joe Frazier.
Ali was sharp early, as the slow-starting Frazier could not bob and weave his way inside of Ali's jab. Ali won the first two rounds.
Ali also continued to attack his opponent verbally, most noticeably in the 3rd round when he was performing well and had plenty of energy. Referee Carlos Padilla said, "During the fight [Ali] would say 'Ah one ah two and a three...Jack be nimble and Jack be quick, Jack jump over the candlestick. Is that all you can give? Come on, you ugly gorilla—hit me!'" Several times, Ali made circular hand gestures at Frazier to encourage him closer.
During round 3, Ali began using the "rope-a-dope", a strategy in which he used the ropes for support and rest while allowing his opponent to expend energy throwing punches. But Frazier landed his first good body punches of the fight in the 3rd round with Ali pinned in the corner.
During the fifth round, Frazier's timing and the rhythm of his bobbing and weaving improved. He was able to avoid the oncoming fists of the champion and, for the first time in the fight, land solid left hooks to Ali's head. Ali spent much of the round along the ropes.
Indeed, shortly after the bell rang to start the 6th round Frazier landed a thunderous left hook which thudded against the right side of Ali's face. Ali was knocked back by the force of the blow, and landed in the ropes behind him. He did not appear dazed or groggy, but was visibly stiff in his body movements while backing away from the oncoming Frazier, and continuing to throw punches of his own. Seconds later, Frazier landed a tremendous, whipping left hook to Ali's head. Again, Ali landed in the ropes behind him, but he only gave the appearance of being slightly dazed, and stiff legged. Though he had taken blows that would have felled a lesser or less committed fighter, Ali remained standing and was able to finish the round without being knocked down.
As the bout wore on it became clear that despite his belief in the utility of the rope-a-dope, when Ali had his back against the ropes, Frazier had the advantage. Smokin' Joe was able to wear down his opponent with body punches, left hooks to the head, and occasionally, short, chopping right hands.
At the close of a very trying ninth round, a visibly tired Ali went back to his corner, and told his trainer: "Man, this is the closest I've ever been to dying." In the opposite corner, Frazier was suffering from pronounced swelling about the face—the result of an accumulation of scores of punches exclusively aimed at his head, increasingly hampering his vision.
British sportswriter Frank McGhee ringside for the Daily Mirror describes the final rounds:
"The main turning point of the fight came very late. It came midway through the thirteenth round when one of two tremendous right-hand smashes sent the gum shield sailing out of Frazier's mouth. The sight of this man actually moving backwards seemed to inspire Ali. I swear he hit Frazier with thirty tremendous punches—each one as hard as those which knocked out George Foreman in Zaire—during the fourteenth round. He was dredging up all his own last reserves of power to make sure there wouldn't have to be a fifteenth round."
Seeing the results of round 14, Eddie Futch decided to stop the fight between rounds rather than risk a similar or worse fate for Frazier in the 15th. Frazier protested stopping the fight, shouting "I want him, boss," and trying to get Futch to change his mind. Futch replied, "It's all over. No one will forget what you did here today", and signaled to referee Carlos Padilla, Jr., to end the bout.
Padilla, who scored the fight, and the ringside judges had Ali ahead by a comfortable margin on points but many of the ringside press had the fight scored much closer. The Associated Press had the fight even after 14 rounds.
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📖 Information sources:
Wikipedia contributors. (2022, July 15). Sheldon coin grading scale. In Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved 14:36, September 12, 2022, from https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Sheldon_coin_grading_scale
NGC, World Coin Price Guide, Philippines Coin Price Guide (Powered by NumisMaster), Retrieved 19:45, October 9, 2022, from https://www.ngccoin.com/price-guide/world/philippines-piso-km-209.1-1975-1978-cuid-1084805-duid-1568232
Philippine Coin Catalog. 1 Piso Ang Bagong Lipunan Series Coin. Numismatics Philippines. Retrieved 19:42, October 9, 2022, from https://www.numismatics.ph/coins/ang-bagong-lipunan-series/1-piso.html
Numista Coin Catalog. Coins from Philippines. Retrieved 19:40, October 9, 2022, from https://en.numista.com/catalogue/pieces3748.html
Wikipedia contributors. (2022, October 1). Thrilla in Manila. In Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved 22:38, October 7, 2022, from https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Thrilla_in_Manila&oldid=1113421083