1000 reis piece of John V
The detectorist who unearthed this coin asked to remain anonymous. It’s a Portuguese gold coin and the finder said it seems odd that it ended up in a field in Dorset.
This find is a 1000 reis piece, otherwise known as a quartinho. On the obverse is the Portuguese Coat of Arms and the legend starts with IOANNES V, so it was struck for John V (1706-50). On the reverse is a Jerusalem cross with quatrefoils in the angles and positioned above the cross is the date: 1733. 1000 reis pieces of this type were struck at the mint situated in Lisbon.
The coin measures about 19mm in diameter and is made from 0.917% fine gold. The exchange rare between coins like this one and British currency was well known so lots of them circulated in Great Britain.
Gold from the New World
Portugal was the first to claim a share of the New World, swiftly followed by Spain. Supposedly to avoid conflict, bulls of Pope Alexander VI became the basis of the Treaty of Tordesillas (1494) through which everything east of a line drawn across the Atlantic at a point 370 miles west of the Cape Verde Islands was given to Portugal and everything west of it to Spain. This allowed Portugal to claim Brazil but it did not do so until the 16th century. It is remarkable that Pope Alexander took it upon himself to divide up land that at the time had not even been discovered!
It was some time before the Portuguese started to exploit Brazil. Initially it was through slave labour on plantations but the revenue raised was not large. Everything changed in the 1690s when gold was discovered. By 1750 gold mines in Brazil were producing 15 tons per year and it has been estimated that the total weight for the 18th century was 800-850 tons.
Almost everyone knows that Spain gained a huge amount of gold from its colonies in the New World. Fewer are aware that Portugal, too, reaped a golden harvest during the 18th century in Brazil.
Mints were set up in Brazil at Bahia, Rio de Janeiro and in the mining area known as Minas Gerais. The coins were very similar to those circulating in Portugal but had the first letter of the mint name in the angles of the Jerusalem cross on the reverse. Besides coins struck at Lisbon, Portuguese gold coins made in Brazil have also been found in Great Britain.
Valuation
The images of this 1000 reis coin are not very clear but I can see no damage and it looks as if it would grade at least Fine. It’s not rare but is an interesting Portuguese gold coin, a great detecting find and it shouldn’t be worth any less than £200 to a collector.
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