Silver medal Cult of personality - Che Guevara proof
Silver medal Cult of personality - Che Guevara proof
The product can also be purchased directly in the stores of the Czech Mint
Cult of personality
The sixth silver medal of the Czech Mint from the series entitled Cult of personality commemorates the controversial man named Che Guevara.
When the Argentine medical student Ernesto Guevara embarked on a journey through South America, he had no idea that his life would change at all. On his journey, he met helpless poor people - they had lack of food, education, healthcare or shelter and had to endure humiliation, abuse and exploitation just to get a job. He saw democracy undermined by Western powers and concluded that nothing had changed since the fall of the Incas. Latin America was still a slave to imperialism, colonialism and capitalism. The young scholar encouraged by leftist theories concluded that the Third World could only be liberated with the help of proletarian internationalism and world revolution. In Mexico he met a like-minded man - Fidel Castro, who was preparing the overthrow of the Cuban dictator Batista. They became loyal comrades and emerged from two years of guerrilla warfare as the new rulers of the "island of freedom". Guevara acquired the nickname Che, because he often used the word, which can be translated to czech as “hele“, and a number of positions in post-revolutionary society. He influenced politics, diplomacy, agriculture, finance and the military. He made decisions about the lives of political opponents, helped repel the Bay of Pigs invasion, and played a central role in the installation of Soviet nuclear missiles in Cuba. He was not, however, a supporter of a strong-willed Soviet Union. His belief that revolution could be brought to countries in South America, Asia and Africa proved fatal. He unsuccessfully attempted a coup in the Congo and then went to Bolivia, where he failed to win the support of the local population. After a year of grueling fighting, he was betrayed, captured, and eventually executed. His determined face became a global icon and his dreamy soul an eternal inspiration - both romantic and controversial…
The obverse side of the medal, which is the work of academic sculptor Jiří Dostál, presents a characteristic portrait of Che Guevara with a beret on his head, supplemented with his name and life dates. On the reverse side there is the revolutionary's quote “REVOLUTION MUST BE HATED AND KILLED“ together with the Cuban flag.
Each medal includes a special appendix that offers an objective view of Che Guevara through the eyes of historian Pavel Kosatik.