Catalog
1 Octavo - Carlos IV
| Issuer | Manila Mint |
|---|---|
| Year | 1798-1806 |
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| Currency | Real (1700-1857) |
| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Diameter | Log in to see details |
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| Obverse description | Central field displays the crowned Spanish royal coat of arms, quartered with the castles of Castile and lions of León, surmounted by an ornate crown. Two six-pointed stars flank the shield at left and right. The peripheral legend encircles the design within the coin's rim, reading from the upper right in abbreviated Latin. |
|---|---|
| Obverse script | Log in to see details |
| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Reverse description | Log in to see details |
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| Reverse lettering | VTRAq · VIRT · PROTEGO · F · 1805 · M (Translation: Protector of virtue in both worlds.) |
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| Additional information |
The Manila Mint was established in 1728 primarily to produce small copper coinage for local Philippine trade, filling a chronic shortage of low-denomination currency that Spanish silver could not practically address. The octavo denominations were the workhorses of everyday commerce in the archipelago, used in markets where fractional transactions made silver entirely impractical.
Carlos IV's reign coincided with Spain's deepening financial strain from the Napoleonic Wars, and colonial mints were under pressure to maintain local currency supplies even as metropolitan Spain struggled. Philippine copper issues from this period are frequently encountered with uneven strikes — a known characteristic of the Manila Mint's equipment, not collector wear.