30 000 Réis - Maria II Countermark 'Crowned Shield' over Dobrão/João V

The 1847 countermark program was a fiscal necessity, not a commemorative gesture. Portugal's treasury, perpetually strained through the Liberal Wars and their aftermath, authorized the revalidation of older João V gold dobrões still circulating at face value — applying the crowned shield punch to authenticate them as current under Maria II's monetary authority. The operation avoided the cost of melting and recoining an enormous quantity of high-karat gold already in circulation.

Gomes M2 30 specimens vary considerably in the placement and sharpness of the applied punch, depending on the host coin's surface condition at time of countermarking.