history of money

The MACC’s numismatic collection is rich and varied, offering visitors an authentic journey through the history of money.

In the large archive cabinet that occupies the centre of the room, vertical displays show representative examples of coins from Ancient Greece’s archaic period to coins and banknotes from Portugal and its former colonies.

The first section shows us excellent and rare silver coins from Ancient Greece (ar-chaic, classical and Hellenistic periods), from Greek colonies in southern Italy (coins from the so-called Magna Graecia), from the Empire of Alexander the Great and from the Achaemenid Empire. The next section shows us equally rare and exceptional coins from the Roman Republic, the Roman Empire and the Byzantine Empire, cov-ering a chronological arc of more than 1500 years.
The third section is dedicated to the coins of the Portuguese Monarchy, from D. Afonso Henriques’ reign to D. Manuel II’s reign. On display, there is also a section with coins from the period between the Portuguese Republic and the moment the euro came into circulation. Finally, the last section shows banknotes (paper money) issued from the end of the Constitutional Monarchy to the 21st century, either in mainland Portugal, the autonomous regions of Madeira and Azores or in the former colonies.

The lower drawer displays other coins and banknotes that correspond, chronologi-cally, to those in the vertical displays, as well as fiduciary instruments such as credit notes, bills and cheques.