1 Escudo Type VII Counterstamp

Costa Rica's mid-century gold coinage suffered from a chronic shortage of properly assayed domestic production, and the counterstamp program applied to circulating escudos was a direct administrative response — a way to validate and re-authorize coins whose provenance or fineness was in question. The Type VII punch is distinguished from earlier applications by its specific die characteristics documented in the KM series, though attributing individual examples to a precise year within the 1849–1857 window requires careful die study.

Costa Rica didn't establish a formal national mint until 1864. Everything before that date was struck under contract or improvised arrangement, which explains the counterstamp's existence in the first place.