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50 Céntimos Counterstamped Coinage, Type VIII
| Issuer | Costa Rica |
|---|---|
| Year | 1923 |
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| Currency | Colón (1896-date) |
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| Obverse description | The obverse displays the Costa Rican national arms, featuring a central shield bearing a volcanic landscape with three mountains and a rising sun, enclosed within an oval cartouche flanked by laurel and coffee branches. Seven stars appear above the shield, representing the seven provinces. The circular legend REPUBLICA DE COSTA RICA arcs along the upper periphery, while the host coin date 1887 appears at the bottom of the field. A circular counterstamp bearing the date 1923 has been applied to the central shield, applied incuse, identifying this as an officially restruck emergency issue. |
|---|---|
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| Edge | Reeded |
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| Additional information |
Costa Rica's counterstamped issues of the early 1920s were a practical response to chronic silver shortages and the difficulty of contracting new coinage abroad during a period of postwar monetary disruption. Rather than mint fresh pieces, the government authorized the application of official stamps to existing circulating coins — a documented expedient used across multiple Central American nations during this period. Type VIII is one of several counterstamp varieties catalogued for this denomination, distinguished by the specific punch device used.
The host coins vary in origin and date, which is why condition assessments for counterstamped types depend as much on the underlying piece as on the stamp itself.