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1/4 Bazaruco
| Issuer | Portuguese Colonial Administration (Ceylon) |
|---|---|
| Year | 1597-1655 |
| Type | Standard circulation coin |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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|---|---|
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| Reverse description | The reverse displays a large armillary sphere rendered as a series of intersecting circular bands forming an X-like pattern when viewed flat, a well-known device of Portuguese imperial coinage symbolizing navigation and overseas dominion. The design is set within a circular beaded border. The strike is uneven and the flan irregular, characteristic of hammered copper bazaruco coinage produced in the Portuguese colonial mint at Colombo during the seventeenth century. No legend or inscription is present. |
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| Mintage | ND (1597-1655) |
| Additional information |
The bazaruco was a Portuguese colonial unit derived from the Indian term bazarucos, used across Goa, Cochin, and Ceylon to denominate the lowest-value copper currency circulating among local populations. Ceylon's Portuguese administration issued these pieces during a period of sustained military pressure from the Dutch VOC, which began systematically seizing Portuguese Indian Ocean ports from the 1630s onward. Colombo itself fell to the Dutch in 1656 — one year after this type's issue window closes.