6 Bits Cut of Spanish Colonial 8 Reales

Dominica's chronic shortage of small change in the early nineteenth century led colonial administrators to authorize the cutting and counterstamping of Spanish colonial eight reales — a crude but effective solution practiced across several British Caribbean islands simultaneously. The six-bits cut represents three-quarters of the parent coin, with the fraction value stamped to authenticate it for local circulation. Britain had captured Dominica from France in 1761, and the island changed hands repeatedly before permanent British control; by 1813, its monetary supply depended almost entirely on recycled Spanish silver.

Parent coins most commonly derive from Mexican or Potosí mints.