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1 Real Type I Countermark
| Issuer | Casa Nacional de Moneda de Costa Rica |
|---|---|
| Year | 1841-1842 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | 1 Real |
| Currency | Log in to see details |
| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Weight | Log in to see details |
| Diameter | Log in to see details |
| Thickness | Log in to see details |
| Shape | Log in to see details |
| Technique | Log in to see details |
| Orientation | Log in to see details |
| Engraver(s) | Log in to see details |
| In circulation to | Log in to see details |
| Reference(s) | Log in to see details |
| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
| Obverse script | Log in to see details |
| Obverse lettering | FERDIN • VII • DEI • GRATIA • 1820 • (Translation: Fernando 7th by the grace of God) |
| Reverse description | Reverse of the host coin displaying the crowned Royal Arms of Castile and León, quartered with castles and lions, centered in the field in the standard Spanish colonial style. The legend surrounding the shield reads • HISPAN • ET IND • REX • with the mint mark and assayer initials flanking. A circular hole has been punched to the left of the shield, consistent with the cut-and-countermarked emergency coinage practice. The denomination mark '2R' and mint letter 'M' appear within the legend, identifying the host as a 2 Reales struck at Mexico City. The toothed border and milled edge are characteristic of late Spanish colonial milled coinage. |
| Reverse script | Log in to see details |
| Reverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Edge | Log in to see details |
| Mint | Log in to see details |
| Mintage | Log in to see details |
| Additional information |
Costa Rica's monetary infrastructure in the early 1840s was almost entirely dependent on foreign silver circulating without official sanction. The solution was a countermarking campaign: existing Spanish colonial and Central American Federation reales were stamped with the national mark to legitimize them as domestic currency, sidestepping the expense of a full mint operation. The Casa Nacional de Moneda in Cartago handled the work.
Host coins vary considerably, and the countermark itself is often weakly applied — a direct consequence of the improvised nature of the program. Finding a specimen where both the host coin's type and the countermark are simultaneously clear is genuinely difficult.