500 Réis - Pedro II Countermark '500' or 'S00' and new lettering over Cruzado João IV

These pieces are countermarked host coins — João IV cruzados from the mid-seventeenth century restruck under Pedro II as part of Portugal's monetary revaluations of the 1680s and 1690s, a period when the Crown repeatedly manipulated existing silver rather than minting fresh coinage. The stamped value and updated lettering gave legal currency status to older circulating silver without the expense of full reminting.

The 'S00' reading on some examples is a die-cutting artifact, not a separate variety in the strict sense — the punch for '500' was poorly engraved on certain dies, producing a form that resembles the letter S. Collectors and catalogers have treated these inconsistently across the Gomes reference numbers.