Catalog
See full images - free registration
Continue with Google - no registration!
or register with email
Why register? Just to keep bots out of our catalog. Your email stays private - we will never share it or send you anything uninvited. We guarantee you that!
10 Macutas - José I
| Issuer | Angola |
|---|---|
| Year | 1762-1770 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | Log in to see details |
| Currency | Log in to see details |
| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Weight | 15 g |
| 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 | Latin |
| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Reverse description | The denomination MACUTAS 10 is inscribed in three lines across the center of the field, flanked on either side by a symmetrical laurel wreath tied at the base with a ribbon bow. The date 1763 appears at the top of the wreath, while the circular legend AFRICA·PORTUGUEZA· (Portuguese Africa) runs around the periphery. Small floral rosette ornaments punctuate the legend and flank the numeral. The entire design is contained within a finely milled border consistent with the obverse. |
| 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 |
Angola's macuta coinage was established by royal decree in 1762 specifically to address the chronic shortage of small transactional currency in the Portuguese colony, where trade had long relied on cloth — the nzimbu shell system having already collapsed — and improvised barter. José I's administration pushed the issue partly to formalize taxation collection in a medium the colonial treasury could actually account for.
These were struck in Lisbon, not locally, then shipped across the Atlantic for colonial circulation — a logistical reality that left many examples with light edge handling from the voyage before they ever reached a merchant's hand.