BRAZIL. 960 Kings. (Ar. 26.75g/40mm). 1816. Bay B. (Km#307). Good Very Fine. Nice specimen. Minted on a coin of 8 Reales of Fernando VII.
Between 1808 and 1827 Brazil minted around 22 million patacones or 960 reis based on Spanish pesos or duros. There are different explanations for this phenomenon: on the one hand, it is believed that it was made with the intention of defraying the expenses of the Court, recently arrived in Bahia fleeing from the Napoleonic invasion of the Iberian Peninsula. On the other hand, it is pointed out that the beginning of the independence processes, both in Portuguese and Spanish America, destabilized the markets and, above all, put the main silver producing centers in check, among them the most important: Potosí, with the consequent collapse international trade in metals, especially silver. Although coins were also made on new blanks, the vast majority of them are minted on 8 reales (fundamentally ultramarine but there are also known cases of Spanish peninsulares), 20 reales de vellón and even 30 Majorcan sous. We are facing what, with all certainty, is one of the great jewels of Brazilian numismatics, its collection being highly demanded in South America in general and in Brazil in particular.
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