Catalog
1 Centavo Figueira Da Foz
| Issuer | Associação Comercial e Industrial de Figueira da Foz |
|---|---|
| Year | |
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| Value | 1 Centavo (0.01 PTE) |
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| Obverse description | Dark blue on beige paper. At left, a heraldic shield bearing a female allegorical head in medallion surrounded by a cogwheel, set against a cityscape vignette at the lower margin; at upper left, a winged cartouche supports a banner scroll inscribed with the issuing association's name. The large numeral '1' is printed centrally, flanked to the right by a circular embossed dry seal of the association. Two signature panels at the lower centre bear the manuscript signatures of the President and the Treasurer. |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | ASSOCIAÇÃO COMERCIAL E INDUSTRIAL FIGUEIRA DA FOZ 1 O PRESIDENTE, O TESOUREIRO, (Translation: Commercial and Industrial Association Figueira da Foz / The President / The Treasurer) |
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| Comments |
Figueira da Foz, a fishing and resort town on the Portuguese Atlantic coast, was one of dozens of municipalities where local commercial associations issued their own low-denomination cédulas during the currency shortages of the First World War and its aftermath. The Banco de Portugal's inability to keep small change in circulation drove merchants to organize these emergency substitutes collectively — the issuer here was a trade and industry association, not a bank, which made the notes legally dubious but practically essential.
The embossed seal was the primary authenticity device, applied by hand. Forgery of these hyper-local issues was rarely worth the effort given the tiny face values and restricted geographic acceptance.