1 Barilla

The barilla was the smallest denomination in circulation in colonial Manila, and this 1766 piece represents one of the earliest municipally-issued coins in Philippine history. The City of Manila operated under a cabildo system granted by Spanish colonial authority, and the right to strike local copper coinage for petty transactions was a pragmatic concession to the chronic shortage of small change that plagued the colony throughout the eighteenth century.

Spanish silver consistently drained eastward through the galleon trade to China, leaving virtually nothing below the reale level for everyday commerce. KM#1 designation confirms this as the foundational type of Philippine municipal coinage.