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2 Reales Type III Counterstamp
| Issuer | Casa Nacional de Moneda de Costa Rica |
|---|---|
| Year | 1845 |
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| Composition | Silver (.812) |
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| Obverse description | The obverse displays the host coin's original design: a draped bust of King Charles III of Spain facing right, with an elaborate coiffure adorned with a floral ornament. The circumferential legend reads CAROLUS III DEI G., with the date 1788 in the lower exergual area. Superimposed upon the diadem of the portrait is the Type III Costa Rican counterstamp, struck in an oval cartouche bearing the legend COSTA RICA and the denomination 2R, applied by the Casa Nacional de Moneda de Costa Rica to authorize the coin for local circulation. The coin retains the original milled border of the Spanish host flan. |
|---|---|
| Obverse script | Latin |
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| Additional information |
In 1845, Costa Rica lacked the infrastructure to mint its own coinage at scale, so the Casa Nacional de Moneda in San José applied counterstamps to existing Spanish colonial and Central American Federation silver to legitimize it for domestic circulation. The Type III counterstamp — a distinct punch variant within a series of similar authorizations — represents one of several attempts to regulate a monetary supply that was otherwise chaotic, flooded with worn and clipped foreign pieces of uncertain fineness.
The host coin beneath the stamp varies, which complicates cataloging considerably. KM#42 encompasses a range of host types, and the premium on any given example shifts substantially depending on the legibility and origin of the underlying planchet.