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Ceitil - António I Countermark 'Açor' over Ceitil
| Issuer | Portugal |
|---|---|
| Year | 1582 |
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| Currency | Real branco (1415-1517) |
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| Obverse description | Countermark of a goshawk (açor), the heraldic symbol adopted by Prior António of Crato as claimant to the Portuguese throne, struck over the obverse of an earlier ceitil depicting a castle rising above stylized waves of the sea. The countermark is applied in the field and partially overlaps the underlying castle design, as was typical of emergency validation counterstamps of the period. The host coin's castle motif, a standard feature of the ceitil series, remains partially visible beneath the applied punch. The irregular flan and worn surfaces reflect the hammered manufacture and extended circulation of the host coin. |
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| Reverse script | Latin |
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| Additional information |
The 'açor' (goshawk) countermark was applied to circulating ceitis under António I, the Prior of Crato, during his contested seventy-day reign in 1580 — the last serious Portuguese challenge to Philip II's absorption of the kingdom. António's administration countermarked existing copper to assert monetary authority during a campaign that ended at the Battle of Alcântara. That he issued currency at all during such a brief and ultimately doomed reign makes these pieces genuinely unusual documents of the succession crisis.