Any help with what this 25.7g Copper Coin is?

jesbroken

I've had this coin for a few years and cannot for the life of me, remember what it is. Any help would be appreciated. It appears to have a copper core insert, but not sure with 40 stamped in it. It is about 40mm in diameter, just a little larger than a Morgan$. Perhaps that's what the 40 is in regards to, do not know.
Thank you.
Jim

syl

It looks to me like a Brazil 80 reis that was stamped down to 40 reis, as their moneys were devalued. I'd look for between the 1810's to 1840's to see what section of Brazil that it was from. My eyes aren't good enough to read your coin.

jesbroken

Thank you syl. That appears to be the case. I've read it occurred from 1822 thru 1832, but also a different period of time. The date is worn too badly to tell. Per Google.
"Brazil devalued its currency by countermarking older 80 Reis coins with a new 40 Reis designation, a practice common in the early 19th century, such as the 1829 "40 Reis on 80 Reis" coin of Emperor Pedro I. This overstriking process was a common form of monetary adjustment, where coins were stamped with a new, lower value, often over older coins that were no longer current."
Jim

genosse

This is the Geral countermark.
National and regional copper coin standards, counterfeiting, and inflation led to chaos in Brazil's monetary circulation. Consequently, the government passed Law No. 54 of October 6, 1835, requiring all copper coins to be countermarked according to the following standards:
10 Réis countermark - coins weighing 2 oitavas (7.1718 g)
20 Réis countermark - coins weighing 4 oitavas (14.3436 g)
40 Réis countermark - coins weighing 8 oitavas (28.6872 g)
The Geral countermark is a circle with a plain or shaded field containing the neat numerals 40, 20, and 10 inside, with a diameter of 13.5 mm, 12 mm, and 10 mm, respectively. Typically, the countermark is applied over the numerals of the previous denomination.

Thus, the countermark established half the denomination value for coins minted in Rio de Janeiro and Bahia, and half the denomination value for coins minted at provincial mints. After the countermark, coins minted at provincial mints (and previously circulated only within the respective province) were permitted to circulate throughout Brazil.

Your 80 réis coin weighs less than the standard (25.7 grams instead of 28.69 grams). The weight loss was most likely due to edge grinding (?) and circulation. However, it is also possible that it is a contemporary counterfeit.

jesbroken

@genosse Wow! Quite informative. Thank you. I first thought it was a counterfeit, due to the weight. But after your thoughts on the possibility it was edge grinding had me check the rims/edges and found that indeed, at least some grinding did occur, in my opinion due to the hollowed out edge. Great post. Still might be a counterfeit. lol
Jim