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20 Reis - João Prince Regent Countermark 'SHIELD' over 'X Reis, José'
| Issuer | Angola |
|---|---|
| Year | 1809 |
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| Currency | Real (18th century-1914) |
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|---|---|
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| Reverse lettering | PECVNIA·TOTVM·CIRCUMIT·ORBEM |
| Edge | Plain |
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| Additional information |
In 1809, the Portuguese colonial administration in Angola faced a chronic shortage of small change. Rather than wait for fresh copper shipments from Lisbon — itself under Napoleonic occupation — local authorities counterstamped existing circulating pieces with a crowned shield to revalue and re-authorize them under João, then serving as Prince Regent following his mother Maria I's incapacitation. The host coins, struck under José I decades earlier, were already well-worn before receiving the punch.
The countermark itself is notoriously inconsistent in placement and strike depth, a consequence of improvised application in-colony rather than controlled mint production.