Owner Comments:
1920 was the first year that Culion Leper Colony coins were struck at the newly opened U.S. Manila Mint. The 1920 Culion Leper Colony issue consisted of Ten Centavos, Twenty Centavos, and One Peso coins, all of which were struck in aluminum.
The obverse design of the 1920 Cullion Leper Colony "20 Centavos" consists of a caduceus, the words "BUREAU OF HEALTH" and the date "1920". The reverse has the denomination "20 CENTAVOS" and the words "CULION LEPER COLONY - PHILIPPINE ISLANDS". The 1920 "20 Centavos" carried no mint mark.
The aluminum Culion Leper Colony coins proved totally unsatisfactory due to rapid deterioration from the climatic conditions in the Philippines and the chemical disinfect (mercuric bichloride) used to disinfect leper colony money. Starting in 1922 all Leper Colony coinage would be struck in copper-nickel.
Since the Philippine Bureau of Health routinely disinfected all circulating Culion Leper Colony coins in harsh chemicals almost all surviving specimens show moderate to excessive surface hairlines. As a result finding specimens of any date that do not "details grade" can be quite challenging. This is particularly true for the 1913 and 1920 aluminum issues which were more susceptible to damage from the harsh cleaning. To date this specimen is only the second 1920 CLC Twenty Centavos to receive a numerical grade from NGC. At XF40 this specimen is a NGC Top Pop coin and the single finest NGC graded example of this date.
SPECIFICATIONS:
Mint: U.S. Manila Mint
Mint Mark: None
Mintage: 10,000
Composition: Aluminum
Diameter: 32.3 mm
NGC Population: 1/0 (A NGC Top Pop Coin)