See full images — free registration
Continue with Google — it's free or register with email

10 Centavos

Issuer Portuguese Guinea (1910-1975)
Year 1973
Type Log in to see details
Value 10 Centavos (0.10)
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 Central field features the Portuguese armillary sphere surmounted by the crowned Portuguese shield, displaying the traditional five escutcheons arranged in a cross pattern with castles on the bordure. The armillary sphere is rendered in fine detail with intersecting bands. Four decorative floral rosettes are positioned symmetrically in the field surrounding the central device. The country name GUINÉ arcs along the upper legend, while the date 1973 appears in the lower exergue.
Obverse script Latin
Obverse lettering Log in to see details
Reverse description Log in to see details
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

By 1973, Portuguese Guinea was effectively a lost cause for Lisbon. The PAIGC had declared independence unilaterally in September of that year and already held roughly two-thirds of the territory. Aluminum coinage for a colonial administration in its final months was, at minimum, an act of institutional stubbornness — these pieces circulated, if at all, in a colony that had already functionally ceased to exist under Portuguese control.

Guinea-Bissau was formally recognized internationally within months of this issue's striking.