1 Centavo - Prova

Casa da Moeda do Brasil issued pattern strikings of this centavo denomination ahead of the 1979 monetary reform, testing stainless steel as a cost-effective replacement for the earlier aluminum-bronze coinage being eroded by Brazil's chronic inflation. The "Prova" designation marks it as an official trial piece rather than a collector proof — the distinction matters, as provas were produced for internal technical evaluation and circulated among mint officials and government treasury staff rather than being sold to the public.

The transition these pieces anticipated proved short-lived. Inflation rendered the 1 centavo functionally worthless within years of introduction.