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50 Centavos
| Issuer | Banco da Beira |
|---|---|
| Year | 1919 |
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| Value | Log in to see details |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Engraver(s) | Log in to see details |
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| Reference(s) | P#R3 |
| Obverse description | The obverse carries the Portuguese coat of arms surmounted by an armillary sphere, flanked by laurel branches, centrally positioned as the principal vignette. The bank title BANCO DA BEIRA and the promise to pay inscription appear in letterpress, with the denomination CINCOENTA CENTAVOS repeated in the text and at the corners. The note is dated Beira, 15 de Setembro de 1919, with the printer's imprint of Bradbury, Wilkinson & Cº Ld, Engravers, London at the lower margin. |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Reverse description | The reverse is printed in blue and presents an elaborate intaglio guilloche composition centred on a large oval medallion containing the bold numeral 50 in white relief against a horizontally lined background. The inscription CINCOENTA above and CENTAVOS below the numeral are set within the medallion, which is surrounded by intricate scrollwork, floral rosettes, and radiating lathe-work patterns extending to all four corners of the note. |
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| Comments |
Banco da Beira was one of several regional quasi-commercial banks authorized to issue emergency low-denomination currency in Portuguese colonial Mozambique during a period when small change had effectively vanished from circulation. The 50 Centavos belongs to the bank's 1919 emergency series, printed by Bradbury Wilkinson in London — a firm better known for engraving postage stamps and securities than colonial fractional currency.
Beira's isolation as a port city serving the Rhodesian hinterland made coin shortages acutely disruptive to daily trade. These low-value notes filled that gap, and most were used hard and discarded quickly.