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Dinheiro 'Pentagram'- Afonso I
| Issuer | Portugal |
|---|---|
| Year | 1169-1185 |
| Type | Standard circulation coin |
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| Reverse description | The reverse field presents a bold Latin legend arranged in two or three lines across the central field, reading REX PORT, identifying the issuer as King of Portugal. The lettering is executed in the rough, archaic style characteristic of the earliest Portuguese royal coinage, with individual letters unevenly spaced and of varying depth due to the hand-struck hammered technique. The flan edges are irregular, as is typical for billon dinheiros of Afonso I's reign. The overall design reflects the nascent state of Portuguese royal monetary production in the late 12th century. |
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| Edge | Plain |
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| Additional information |
Afonso Henriques was already in his sixties when these were struck — an old man by medieval standards, the first king of a realm that had only formally existed since 1143, when the Treaty of Zamora compelled Castile to recognize Portuguese independence. The Church hadn't fully caught up: papal recognition came only in 1179, meaning some of these coins circulated under a king whose royal title Rome had not yet endorsed.
The billon content here is characteristic of Iberian monetary pragmatism during the Reconquista, when silver was perpetually diverted toward military campaigns rather than coinage.