Item number: A4691

Reference number: KM#475.2

Year: AD 1851

Material: Gold

Size: 22.0 x 22.0 mm

Weight: 8.96 g

Manufactured by: Casa da Moeda(Portuguese Mint)

Provenance: Fuchin Coin 2026

This is a gold coin with a face value of 5,000 réis, minted in AD 1851 during the reign of Queen Maria II of Portugal, using dies designed by the engraver William Wyon.

The obverse features a left-facing portrait of Queen Maria II wearing a pearl diadem, encircled by the Latin legend “· MARIA II · PORTUG: ET · ALGARB: REGINA · 1851”, meaning “Maria II, Queen of Portugal and the Algarves, 1851”. The reverse displays the coat of arms of the Kingdom of Portugal, enveloped by a royal mantle arranged as a crowned pavilion. Its elegant folds are suspended by cords terminating in tassels, with the denomination “5,000 réis” inscribed below.

Around AD 1260, the earlier monetary system derived from Muslim coinage was gradually replaced by the Carolingian system, based on the libra, soldo, and dinheiro. The first two served primarily as units of account, while the dinheiro, a billon coin, constituted the principal form of specie then in circulation.

As the libra was already widely used elsewhere in Europe, its adoption in Portugal facilitated the kingdom’s integration into international trade networks. At the same time, its convenient system of multiples and fractions made domestic transactions easier.

The earliest réis can be traced back to the fourteenth and early fifteenth centuries, when they already displayed traditional features of Portuguese national imagery—the five escutcheons and castles. These motifs, however, had not yet been systematically arranged within a clearly defined shield or ornamental panel.

During the reign of King Duarte I, the introduction of the French gold écu marked an important stage in the development of Portuguese coinage. Under King Afonso V, following the introduction of the 400-réis gold cruzado in AD 1457, the basic pattern of Portuguese coinage became more firmly established. Its obverse bore the crowned royal arms, surrounded by a border of castles, which were initially irregular in number and interspersed with fleurs-de-lis. Within the shield were five escutcheons arranged in a cross, with the two lateral escutcheons still placed horizontally, each bearing five bezants arranged in saltire.

Throughout the Iberian Union, the Portuguese monetary system was preserved in accordance with the decisions of the Cortes of Tomar, while the kingdom’s coinage retained its traditional characteristics, apart from the customary substitution of the monarch’s name on the obverse. This practice continued after the Restoration of the monarchy; from AD 1640 onwards, Portuguese coinage underwent no significant changes in type, nor was the monetary system substantially altered. Technologically, however, Prince Pedro abolished hand-hammered coinage and further advanced the development of mechanised minting.

In AD 1722, the growing influx of Brazilian gold into the mother country, together with the reforming and centralising ambitions of King João V, his foreign policy, and, to some extent, the broader international situation and cultural models prevailing in early eighteenth-century Europe, fostered a desire to reshape the state administration and enhance the country’s international standing, with the aim of bringing the kingdom into line with its European counterparts, particularly France. Monetary reform formed part of this broader programme. A new system of gold coinage was subsequently established, with the escudo, valued at 1,600 réis, serving as its basic unit, while the existing series based on 4,800 réis remained in circulation alongside it.

The upheavals of the early nineteenth century, particularly the first French invasion, the subsequent transfer of the royal court to Rio de Janeiro, and the victory of the Anglo-Portuguese forces, which effectively placed the kingdom under British protection, contributed to profound changes in the social, political, and geostrategic landscape of Europe and the colonial world. In monetary terms, one of the immediate consequences of the invasions and the disruption of relations with Brazil was a decline in the flow of gold into the kingdom. In AD 1815, the United Kingdom of Portugal, Brazil and the Algarves was proclaimed in Rio de Janeiro, increasing the mother country’s dependence on its former colony, which had now been elevated to the status of a kingdom.

On 24 April AD 1835, Portugal legally introduced an entirely new decimal monetary system. The old gold escudo system, which had been in use since AD 1722, was abolished in favour of a simpler method of reckoning. The reform reflected the international trend towards the Gold Standard and established a fixed monetary ratio between gold and silver.

In AD 1854, the kingdom became the first European country to follow Britain in adopting the Gold Standard. This transition not only brought it into closer alignment with its principal trading partner, but was also influenced by the lower cost of adopting gold rather than silver as the standard and by the already widespread circulation of gold coinage domestically.

Thereafter, social and political unrest in Brazil led to a decline in remittances, making it increasingly difficult for Portugal to maintain the Gold Standard. In AD 1891, gold convertibility was suspended, but it was restored in AD 1931. This restoration lasted for only 82 days, after which convertibility was once again suspended amid another international financial crisis.

The real (plural: réis) was a former unit of currency in Portugal. Following the Republican Revolution of AD 1910, it was replaced by the escudo in AD 1911 at an exchange rate of 1 escudo to 1,000 réis.

Iberian Union: In the latter half of the sixteenth century, King Sebastian of Portugal personally led a military expedition to Morocco, but disappeared following his defeat. The ensuing succession crisis ultimately brought the Portuguese Crown under the Spanish Habsburg dynasty, with the Spanish monarch also assuming the Portuguese throne and thereby establishing a personal union between the two kingdoms.

物件編號: A4691

參考書目編號: KM#475.2

年代: 公元 1851 年

材質: 黃金

尺寸: 22.0 x 22.0 mm

重量: 8.96 g

製造地: 葡萄牙造幣廠

來源: 福君錢幣 2026

這是一枚公元1851年葡萄牙女王瑪麗亞二世在位期間鑄造的金幣，面值為5,000里爾，其鑄造所使用的幣模由雕刻師威廉．維恩（William Wyon）設計。

金幣正面為瑪麗亞二世女王面向左側的肖像，頭戴珍珠冠冕，外圍環繞拉丁文銘文：「· MARIA II · PORTUG: ET · ALGARB: REGINA · 1851」，意為「瑪麗亞二世，葡萄牙與阿爾加維女王，1851」。背面為葡萄牙王國國徽，外圍環繞王室披風，構成頂端加冠的華蓋式樣。披風形成優雅的垂褶，由末端飾有流蘇的繫繩懸掛，下方則標示面值「5,000里爾」。

公元1260年左右，早期穆斯林錢幣制度漸漸被加洛林取代，新的貨幣體系以里弗爾、索爾多與迪內羅為基本單位。其中，前兩者主要作為計價單位使用，而後者，即雜銀幣，則構成當時實際流通金屬貨幣的主體。

由於里弗爾當時已在歐洲其他地區廣泛使用，葡萄牙採用這一貨幣單位後，有助於融入國際貿易網絡；同時，此制度具有便於換算的倍數與分數單位，亦改善了國內交易的便利性。

最早的里爾可追溯至14世紀以及15世紀前期，當時已呈現葡萄牙傳統的國家圖像元素——五盾徽與城堡；然而，這些元素尚未有系統地排列於明確的盾牌或飾板之內。

杜阿爾特一世國王統治時期，法國金盾幣的引入，標誌著葡萄牙鑄幣發展的一個重要階段。至阿方索五世國王在位期間，隨著公元1457年面值400里爾的金十字幣開始鑄造後，葡萄牙鑄幣的基本模式才進一步確立。其正面為加冕的皇家徽章，外圍已帶有城堡飾邊；最初城堡數量仍不規則，並與百合花交錯排列。盾面內部則有五面呈十字排列的小盾，其中兩側的小盾仍採水平排列，每面各飾有五枚呈斜十字形排列的圓形徽記。

伊比利聯盟期間，依據托馬爾議會本身的決議，貨幣制度得以保留，葡萄牙國幣繼續以其傳統特徵鑄造，僅如同過去一樣，於正面更換君主的姓名。王政復辟後情況亦延續不變；換言之，公元1640年之後，葡萄牙錢幣的鑄造在類型上沒有變化，貨幣制度也沒有明顯修改。然而，就技術層面而言，佩德羅王子就此廢除手工錘製，加強機械化鑄幣的發展。

公元1722年，越來越多來自巴西的黃金流入宗主國，加上若昂五世國王推動改革與中央集權的抱負、其外交政策，以及在某種程度上受到當時整體國際局勢與18世紀初歐洲盛行之文化典範的影響，共同促成了重塑國家行政體系及提升葡萄牙國際地位的意願，其目的在於使王國與歐洲其他國家，尤其是向法國看齊。貨幣改革亦是這項整體計畫的一環。國王下令建立新的金幣制度，引入面值1,600里爾的埃斯庫多作為基本單位；與此同時，原有以4,800里爾為基準的貨幣系列仍繼續與新制並行流通。

十九世紀初期的艱難事件，尤其是自第一次法國入侵以及隨之而來的王室遷往里約熱內盧，再加上英葡聯軍勝利，使其實際上淪為英國的保護國，這些事件導致歐洲（以及殖民世界）的社會、政治與地緣戰略格局發生變化。就貨幣政策而言，入侵事件以及與巴西隔絕所產生的最初影響之一，就是流入王國的黃金減少。公元1815年，葡萄牙、巴西與阿爾加維聯合王國在里約熱內盧宣布成立，使宗主國對這個如今已提升為王國的前殖民地更加依賴。

公元1835年4月24日，葡萄牙依法引入了一套全新的十進位貨幣制度。自公元1722年起採用的舊式金埃斯庫多制度遭到廢止，取而代之的是一套更為簡明的計價方式；這項新制度順應了國際上逐漸朝向金本位制發展的趨勢，並採用黃金與白銀之間的固定貨幣比價。公元1854年，葡萄牙成為歐洲第一個仿效英國採行金本位制的國家。這項改革不僅使其與主要貿易夥伴英國接軌，也受到採用黃金而非白銀作為本位成本較低，以及當時金幣已在國內廣泛流通等因素的影響。

此後，巴西的社會與政治動盪導致移民匯款減少，使葡萄牙維持金本位制日益困難。公元1891年，黃金兌換遭到中止，但於公元1931年恢復。這次恢復僅維持82天，隨後在類似的情況下，因另一場國際金融危機而再次中止。

里爾(real，複數為 réis)是葡萄牙過去使用的貨幣單位。公元1910年共和革命後，於公元1911年以埃斯庫多(escudo)取代里爾，兌換比率為1埃斯庫多兌1,000里爾。

伊比利聯盟：16世紀後半，葡萄牙國王賽巴斯蒂安親率軍隊遠征摩洛哥，戰敗後失蹤。其後葡萄牙爆發王位繼承危機，最終西班牙哈布斯堡王朝取得王位，由西班牙國王兼任葡萄牙國王，兩國由此形成共主邦聯。