The obverse depicts a bust of Emiliano Zapata facing forward, wearing his signature wide-brim sombrero and a heavy cartridge bandolier crossed over the chest, with a rebozo-style scarf gathered at the shoulder and held in his right hand. The legend "EMILIANO" arcs along the left rim and "ZAPATA" along the right, with the date split as "19" and "88" flanking the bust at bandolier height.
The reverse carries the Mexican coat-of-arms motif: an eagle perched on a nopal cactus, grasping a serpent in its beak and talon, wings spread wide, with oak and laurel sprigs below tied by a ribbon. The arcing legend reads "DOS ONZAS LEY .999 PLATA PURA," and "AMC" is struck in the exergue beneath the wreath.
Date struck directly in design (no attribution-year inference needed); "AMC" exergue legend serves as Mint Mark per site standard; reverse die pairing shows "LEY" rather than "TROY" wording, possibly a distinct variety from the commonly dealer-cataloged "Snake" round; series/collection name unconfirmed pending primary-source documentation.
Notably high average price for the series given the 2oz silver content ($60-240 range), but a nearly 5-year gap (2018-2023) drives a Red availability tag; a second shorter gap (2024-2026) reinforces the pattern despite a strong recent sales cluster.
| Date | Price | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Aug 1, 2026 | ~240.00 | Most RecentHighest EverUnverifiedOr Best Offer, unconfirmed, no accepted-price language shown |
| Jul 6, 2026 | 198.00 | |
| Feb 12, 2024 | 110.00 | |
| Apr 25, 2023 | 150.00 | |
| Mar 30, 2023 | 150.00 | |
| Mar 16, 2023 | 150.00 | |
| Mar 10, 2023 | 158.95 | |
| Mar 25, 2018 | 67.88 | |
| Jul 17, 2017 | 73.00 | |
| Jun 15, 2017 | 79.99 | |
| Feb 14, 2017 | 79.00 | |
| Dec 30, 2016 | 44.99 | |
| Apr 12, 2015 | 66.50 | |
| Apr 5, 2014 | 111.00 |
Scroll for full 14-sale history ↓
1988 Emiliano Zapata AMC Silver Round Overview
The 1988 Emiliano Zapata AMC Silver Round is a 2 troy ounce, .999 fine silver piece produced by the American Medallion Corporation (AMC) of Houston, Texas. It depicts Emiliano Zapata (1879–1919), the agrarian revolutionary leader of the Mexican Revolution best known for his role in the Zapatista movement and the rallying cry “Tierra y Libertad.”
Unlike AMC’s undated Mythological Legends series, this round carries a struck date of 1988 directly in the obverse design, so no attribution-year reasoning is required here — the date is a design element, not an inference.
This piece belongs to a larger, loosely documented AMC line of 2 oz Mexican historical-figure rounds produced in the late 1980s. Secondary-market research turned up at least two other reverse pairings for the Zapata obverse (an “Aztec Calendar” reverse in addition to this eagle-and-serpent design), a parallel Pancho Villa obverse paired with both an eagle and a calendar reverse, and a combined Villa/Zapata obverse paired with a Winged Victory/Libertad reverse. No period-accurate primary source (AMC catalog, sales literature, or period advertisement) has been located confirming an official series name for this group, so any collection/series designation for this line should be treated as unconfirmed pending further documentation.
A naming discrepancy is also worth flagging: dealer cataloging of the visually similar “Snake” reverse variety commonly renders the legend as “DOS ONZAS TROY .999 PLATA PURA,” while the “LEY” wording (as struck on this documented example) more typically appears paired with dealer listings of the Aztec Calendar reverse. This example’s legend reads “LEY,” not “TROY,” which may represent a distinct die pairing from the commonly catalogued “Snake” variety rather than an exact match to it.
1988 Emiliano Zapata AMC Silver Round Attribution
Mint: American Medallion Corporation (AMC) Issuer: American Medallion Corporation (AMC) Designer/Sculptor/Engraver: Unknown — no engraver’s mark or documented credit located
The “AMC” legend struck in the reverse exergue serves as the Mint Mark under this site’s cataloging standard, consistent with other AMC-era rounds. The date 1988 is struck directly into the obverse design rather than inferred, so this entry requires no dating attribution language. The documented example examined for this entry measures 47.60mm in diameter and 4.20mm in thickness.
1988 Emiliano Zapata AMC Silver Round Notes
- “AMC” struck in the reverse exergue is treated as the Mint Mark per site standard; it is not a separate, unmarked round.
- This obverse is known to have been paired with more than one AMC reverse die (this eagle/serpent design and a separate Aztec Calendar design); collectors should not assume a single fixed pairing for “Emiliano Zapata AMC” rounds.
- The reverse legend on this example reads “DOS ONZAS LEY .999 PLATA PURA” — note the “LEY” wording versus the “TROY” wording seen on some dealer-cataloged examples of a similarly described “Snake” variety.
- No confirmed official AMC series/collection name has been located for this 2 oz Mexican historical-figure line; any series designation applied here is provisional.
- Mintage quantity is undocumented.
1988 Emiliano Zapata AMC Silver Round References
- APMEX, “2 oz Silver Round – Emiliano Zapata Silver (Snake)”
- APMEX, “2 oz Silver Round – Emiliano Zapata Silver (Aztec)”
- WorthPoint, “1988 Mexico Emiliano Zapata 1 Oz 999 Silver”
- Documented example examined (this entry)
- Texas Stacker Archives
