What is Casa Nacional de la Moneda in Potosí?

The Casa Nacional de la Moneda is an enormous colonial-era mint and museum that processed the staggering silver wealth pulled from the Cerro Rico mines, essentially financing the Spanish Empire for many centuries.

Sitting on a whole city block, the fortress-style complex is often viewed as one of South America’s best historical museums. Entry is strictly limited to mandatory two-hour guided tours, and that is it. During these tours, they show the huge original wooden coin presses, powered by mules, and they also address, without flinching, the heavy past involving indigenous people and African slave labour.