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1 Libra
| Issuer | Banco da Beira |
|---|---|
| Year | 1919 |
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| Value | Log in to see details |
| Currency | Libra (1894-1942) |
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| Obverse description | The face is dominated by three circular vignettes in dark blue, each enclosing a sterling pound sign (£1), flanked by ornate guilloche rosettes, with the Portuguese royal arms at centre. The issuer's name COMPANHIA DE MOÇAMBIQUE is set in bold letterpress across the middle, above the denomination UMA LIBRA ESTERLINA in large display type, with the date and place of issue below and two manuscript signatures — O GERENTE DA CAIXA DE EMISSÃO and O ADMINISTRADOR. A bold red OURO overprint panel appears at bottom, with an additional red numeral cancellation stamp at right. |
|---|---|
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| Variants | P#R7a - issued note P#R7b - cancelled note |
| Comments |
Banco da Beira was a private commercial bank operating out of Beira in Portuguese East Africa — present-day Mozambique — and its note-issuing privileges made it one of a handful of colonial institutions authorized to circulate paper currency in the territory. This 1 Libra dates to 1919, a period when Portuguese colonial finances were under significant strain following the First World War, during which Portugal's participation had drained both the metropolitan treasury and its overseas administrations.
Bradbury Wilkinson handled the printing in London, as they did for numerous colonial and private bank issues across the British and Portuguese empires. The denomination in Libras rather than Reis or Escudos reflects the transitional monetary environment of the era — Portugal had adopted the Escudo in 1911, but colonial usage lagged behind metropolitan reform.