Name/Title
"26 de Julio / 10 Millones" Commemorative Lapel Pin — Zafra de los Diez MillonesEntry/Object ID
2025.2.19Description
Upright rectangular stamped-metal lapel pin with rounded corners and a raised outer border. The design reads top to bottom: the legend 26 DE JULIO across the top; a central band containing a row of six stylized rifle silhouettes, rendered as bare-metal outlines reserved against a black ground; a large red numeral 10 dominating the lower two-thirds; and MILLONES along the bottom. Raised lettering, border, and bottle outlines are bare silver-tone metal; the field is black; the numeral is red.Use
Obtained in Cuba by Anna Veltfort and brought to New York City with her when she moved back to the US.Context
The Zafra de los Diez Millones was the 1970 drive to cut and mill ten million tons of sugar in a single harvest, proclaimed by Fidel Castro as the goal for 1970, an objective ultimately not met; the country was militarily mobilized to the cane fields and the rest of the economy was subordinated to it. Despite paralyzing much of the country's other industry, the target was missed, with 8.5 million tons produced — still a historical record. The "26 de Julio" element ties the harvest to the regime's central patriotic holiday (the anniversary of the 1953 Moncada assault): launching the mass phase on 27 October 1969, Castro announced that the suspended Christmas celebrations — the roast pork, the beans, the nougat, and the drink — would be saved for July, so that once the battle of the ten million was won there would be a formidable 26 de Julio with fiestas in Santiago and in every town and sugar mill.Collection
Anna Veltfort collectionAcquisition
Accession
2025.2Source or Donor
Anna VeltfortAcquisition Method
GiftMade/Created
Date made
circa 1969Time Period
1960sPlace
Country
CubaRegion
Caribbean, Central AmericaNotes
Manufacturer/Attribution: Unmarked on the visible (obverse) face; no maker mark legible. Cuban production (tentative as to specific maker; the subject and language are unambiguously Cuban). Designer unknown.
Date: circa 1969–1970 (the harvest's mass phase, Oct 1969, through the intended 26 July 1970 celebration).Inscription/Signature/Marks
Type
InscriptionTranscription
26 de julio
10 millonesLanguage
SpanishTranslation
July 26
10 millionsParts
Single stamped metal plate. Reverse pin/clutch attachment.Materials
Material
MetalMaterial Notes
Stamped metal, likely aluminum or light alloy (tentative), with black and red enamel or paint infill; raised elements left as bare metal.Relationships
Related Person or Organization
Person or Organization
Anna VeltfortNotes
ownerRelated Places
Place
City
HavanaCountry
CubaRegion
Caribbean, Central AmericaNotes
acquisitionPlace
State/Province
New YorkCountry
U.S.A.Continent
North AmericaNotes
preservationRelated Events
Event
Ten-Million-Ton Sugar HarvestEvent
Anniversary of the July 26th attack on the Moncada and Carlos Manuel de a Cespedes barracksCreated By
María A. Cabrera ArúsCreate Date
May 6, 2022Updated By
María A. Cabrera ArúsUpdate Date
June 18, 2026