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1 Real Type I Countermark
| Issuer | Costa Rica |
|---|---|
| Year | 1841-1842 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | Log in to see details |
| Currency | Log in to see details |
| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Diameter | Log in to see details |
| Thickness | Log in to see details |
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| Technique | Countermarked, Cut, Milled |
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| Obverse description | Host coin is a United States Capped Bust dime, with the draped and capped Liberty bust facing left, surrounded by thirteen stars in the field. The date 1833 appears in the exergue below the bust, with the legend LIBERTY inscribed on the Liberty cap. Superimposed upon the host coin is the Costa Rican Type I countermark: a radiant six-pointed star punched within a recessed circle approximately 7 mm in diameter. A round hole has been centrally pierced through the coin, partially obscuring the host design. |
|---|---|
| Obverse script | Log in to see details |
| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Reverse description | Log in to see details |
| Reverse script | Latin |
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| Additional information |
In the early 1840s, Costa Rica lacked the infrastructure to mint its own coinage in sufficient quantity, so the government authorized countermarking foreign silver to legitimize it for domestic circulation. The Type I countermark was applied to cut fractions of larger Spanish colonial cobs and milled reales — raw, irregular pieces that required official sanction before merchants would accept them at face value.
The KM#14 attribution covers host coins of genuinely variable origin, which makes authentication the central challenge with this type. Counterfeits of the countermark itself were documented even at the time.