2 1/2 Euros Figurado de Barcelos, Gold

The Galo de Barcelos — the rooster at the center of this piece's theme — is one of the more peculiar national symbols in modern Europe, tracing its popular form to a 19th-century ceramic tradition from Barcelos in the Minho region, rather than to any medieval origin the legend claims. The story of the miraculous crowing cock that saved an innocent pilgrim from the gallows is almost certainly a 20th-century elaboration, and the rooster's ascent to unofficial national emblem accelerated sharply during the Salazar regime's promotion of folkloric identity.

INCM's "Figurado" series draws on Portuguese clay figurine craft. This gold variant of KM#869 was struck in a limited collector issue alongside base-metal circulation pieces.