100 Guaraníes

José Eduvigis Díaz Vera (October 17, 1833 – February 7, 1867) was a celebrated Paraguayan General. Díaz was born in the town of Cerro Verá east of Pirayú in the department of Paraguarí. In 1852 he joined the militia and later led Battalion #40 of the police. He became the police chief in Asunción and first distinguished himself on raids across the Río Paraná at Corrientes in the spring of 1866 during the Paraguayan War. Díaz was the hero of the September 22, 1866 battle of Curupaity, leading a humiliating rout of the allied forces.

Barely four months later, however, on 26 Jan. 1867, a Brazilian shell exploded over General Diaz's canoe while he was fishing in the River Paraguay, outside the camp at Curupayti. President Francisco Solano López visited the wounded Diaz every day. Diaz's leg was amputated by doctors, but he still died on 7 Feb. 1867.

The remains of the old fortress of Humaitá are located on the left side of the Paraguay River, approximately 430 km to the south of Asunción. During the Paraguayan War (1864–1870) this fortress was important because it controlled river access to the capital, Asunción.

Ruins of Humaitá. Only a few vestiges survived bombardment by enemy cannons during the war. One of these was San Carlos Borromeo's church. Carlos Antonio López ordered its construction. It was inaugurated on January 1, 1861. At the time, it was considered one of the most beautiful in the Americas.