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50 Centimes - Albert I Dutch text
| Issuer | Belgian Congo (1908-1960) |
|---|---|
| Year | 1921-1929 |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Weight | 6.5 g |
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| Obverse description | Laureate bare-headed effigy of King Albert I facing left, modeled in high relief with fine sculptural detail. The legend ALBERT KONING DER BELGEN curves along the upper periphery in Dutch, identifying the monarch as King of the Belgians. The engraver's signature JUL. LAGAE appears in small letters along the lower rim beneath the portrait. The field is smooth and unadorned, allowing the strongly modeled bust to dominate the design. |
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| Reverse description | A tall oil palm tree dominates the center of the reverse, its fronds spreading across the upper field and its trunk bisecting the large denomination numeral 50 and the abbreviation CEN. The date appears in two parts flanking the base of the palm trunk, split by the tree's stem. The circular legend BELGISCH CONGO curves along the lower periphery in Dutch, with two small five-pointed stars flanking the abbreviation CEN at the upper right. The overall composition is bold and emblematic, evoking the tropical character of the Belgian Congo. |
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| Additional information |
Belgian Congo's coinage was issued in parallel French and Dutch legends throughout the colonial period — a direct imposition of Belgium's own linguistic fault lines onto central African currency. The Dutch-text 50 centimes ran concurrently with its French counterpart, KM#22, with both types circulating together in a territory where neither language held any indigenous relevance.
The copper-nickel composition was a deliberate post-WWI choice, as wartime nickel shortages had forced temporary substitutions across Belgian colonial issues.