Portuguese shield

The Portuguese shield (ISO 4217 PTE code) was the official currency of Portugal before the introduction of the Euro on 1 January 2002. 100 cents constituted a shield. His symbol was the cifrão [S {displaystyle mathrm {S}!Vert }]], similar to the sign of Mexican peso ($) but with two vertical bars instead of one.

History

The escudo was first introduced in 1911, after the Republican Revolution of 1910, to replace the real with an exchange rate of 1,000 reales to 1 escudo. The expression mil réis, which referred to 1 escudo, was maintained until the 1990s. One million reales was known as conto do reis, or simply conto, to refer to 1,000 escudos.

In the beginning the value of the shield was set at 4.50 PTE = 1 GBP. After 1914 the value of the escudo fell, settling in 1928 at 108.25 PTE = 1 GBP. In 1931 it changed to 110 PTE, and a new exchange rate was established in 1940 of 27.50 PTE = 1 USD, changing to 25 PTE = 1 USD in 1940 and 28.75 PTE in 1949.

Inflation that continued through the 20th century caused pennies to lose all value and come to an end. With Portugal's entry into the eurozone, the conversion of the Portuguese escudo against the euro was set at 200.482 PTE = 1 EUR.

In January and February 2002, the escudo was used in commercial transactions, along with the euro. The last escudo bills issued could be changed until March 1, 2022.

Coins

The coins in circulation before the change to the euro were those of the following denominations:

Image	Denomination	Metal		Diameter (mm)	Weight (g)	Song	Reverse	Reversal
		Ring	Centre
	1 Shield	Cu+Al+Ni		16,00	1.70	Striated	Escudo de Portugal - REPUBLIC PORTUGUESA - Year of Collection	1
	5 Shields	Cu+Al+Ni		21,00	5.30	Striated	Escudo de Portugal - REPUBLIC PORTUGUESA - Year of Collection	5 HEALTH
	10 Shields	Cu+Al+Ni		24,00	7.40	Striated	Escudo de Portugal - REPUBLIC PORTUGUESA - Year of Collection	10 ESCUDOS - Cruz
	20 Shields	Cu+Ni		26,00	6.80	Striated	Rose of the winds	20 ESCUDOS - Escudo de Portugal - REPUBLIC PORTUGUESA - Year of Collection
	50 Shields	Cu+Ni		31,00	9,40	Striated	Carabela	50 ESCUDOS - Escudo de Portugal - REPUBLIC PORTUGUESA - Year of Collection
	100 Shields	Cu+Ni	Cu+Al+Ni	25,00	8,40	Striated discontinuo	Pedro Nunes - Stars - EUROPE	100 ESCUDOS - Escudo de Portugal - REPUBLIC PORTUGUESA - Year of Collection
	200 Shields	Cu+Al+Ni	Cu+Ni	28,00	9,90	Striated discontinuo	Garcia de Orta - Wheat ears	200 ESCUDOS - Escudo de Portugal - REPUBLIC PORTUGUESA - Year of Collection

Tickets

Last Series

Shield tickets used until 2002.

The last series of Portuguese banknotes was issued between 1995 and 1997, and remained in force until the introduction of the euro. The five banknotes were dedicated to important navigators from the time of the Portuguese discoveries. The banknotes in circulation were those of the following denominations: