Cruzado - Afonso VI Lisbon mint

Afonso VI's reign began in 1656 under the regency of his mother Luísa de Gusmão, with Portugal still fighting a war of independence against Spain that had dragged on since 1640. The cruzado was already an archaic denomination by this point — its roots in the crusading coinage of the fifteenth century long forgotten in daily commerce — but it remained institutionally important as a large silver piece during a period when the Crown desperately needed to maintain monetary credibility while funding an active military campaign.

Gomes records significant variation in die workmanship across Afonso VI issues from Lisbon, reflecting the pressures on the mint during the Restoration War years.