Numistify guide

Which Peruvian Coins Are Silver? Silver Content by Year

Peru’s silver coinage runs from the reales of independence to the sol of the 1930s, with silver commemoratives after that. Here is every silver coin by date, with its silver content.

Updated October 2026 · tables generated from Numistify’s coin templates

The short answer

The 8 reales of 1825–1857 is .903 silver. The decimal sol system introduced in 1863 used .900 silver for the dinero, ½ dinero, ⅕ sol, ½ sol and 1 sol until 1916–1917. The sol and ½ sol of 1922–1935 are .500. From 1935 the sol and ½ sol were struck in brass. The later silver coins in the table, from 1965 onward, are mostly commemoratives.

Peruvian silver coins by year

— Fineness not recorded; silver content as published.

Not every coin is listed. This table is for reference: it covers the silver coins in Numistify’s catalogue and may not include every coin, date, variety or special issue. If your coin is not here, look it up in a world coin catalogue such as Numista or the Standard Catalog of World Coins, or ask your local coin shop.

Reading the table

Fineness is the share of silver in the coin: .900 means 90% silver. Silver (troy oz) is the pure silver it contains, the figure that sets its metal value — multiply it by the day’s silver price. KM is the coin’s number in the Standard Catalog of World Coins, the quickest way to look it up. Our guide to silver and gold melt value shows the calculation.

Telling them apart

1935 has both. The .500 silver sol and ½ sol were struck until 1935, the year the brass coins began, so check a 1935 coin’s colour and weight.

Silver content without a fineness. For many early and late coins the table gives the silver content as published, but no fineness; the silver figure is what matters for metal value.

Transitional coins. In 1858–1861, before the sol system, Peru struck short-lived silver coins in reales, centavos and céntimos.

What they are worth

Silver content sets a floor, not the value. A scarce date, a rare mint or a coin in fine condition can be worth far more than its metal, so check before selling any coin for its silver: look it up in a world coin catalogue such as the Standard Catalog of World Coins or the NGC World Coin Price Guide, compare auction records and eBay sold listings for the same coin in the same condition, and ask your local coin shop. Our guide to what your coin is worth walks through each step, and are old foreign coins worth anything? covers sorting a mixed lot.

Questions people ask

Are old Peruvian soles silver?

Soles of 1864–1916 are .900 silver and soles of 1922–1935 are .500 silver. From 1935 the sol was struck in brass.

How much silver is in a Peruvian 1 sol?

The 1 sol of 1864–1916 (.900, 25 g) contains about 0.72 troy ounces of silver; the .500 sol of 1923–1935 about 0.40 troy ounces.

Are Peruvian 8 reales silver?

Yes. The 8 reales of 1825–1857 is .903 silver, with about 0.79 troy ounces of silver.

Are later Peruvian silver coins for circulation?

Peru’s silver coins from 1965 onward are mostly commemoratives marking anniversaries and events, not everyday change.

Related guides

Silver and gold melt value — turning silver weight into a metal value.

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