Catalog
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| Issuer | Portugal |
|---|---|
| Year | 1917-1919 |
| Type | Coin pattern |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Diameter | Log in to see details |
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| Obverse description | Left-facing effigy of Liberty rendered as a young female bust with naturalistic, finely detailed hair swept back and secured in a loose chignon, adorned with a small olive or laurel sprig tucked above the ear. The portrait is executed in high relief with smooth, classical modeling, the truncation of the shoulder visible at the lower rim. No legend or inscription appears in the field, emphasizing the purely sculptural character of this trial piece. The coin is encircled by a fine milled border of even denticles. |
|---|---|
| Obverse script | Log in to see details |
| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Reverse description | Entirely blank field with no design, inscription, legend, or device of any kind, consistent with its classification as a reverse trial strike. The plain, flat surface shows only the natural texture of the struck planchet, with a uniform milled denticle border encircling the rim. This uniface presentation was intended to test obverse die characteristics without commitment to a reverse design. |
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| Additional information |
Portugal's copper-nickel coinage of this period was tied directly to wartime metal shortages and the young Republic's chronic fiscal instability. The 4 centavos denomination itself was an awkward value, poorly received in circulation, and production decisions shifted repeatedly between 1917 and 1919 as the government weighed composition changes against available metal stocks.
A reverse trial at this juncture likely reflects uncertainty over which design would proceed — the Republic issued multiple experimental strikings before settling on final types, and not all denominations reached confirmed production runs.