1655 - 1660 - Dutch Ceilon
Galle CounterMark - Silver double Tanga

SPECIFICATIONS Denomination Two Tanga Alloy Silver Type Struck Diameter 19/21 mm Thickness _._ mm Weight legal 4.38 gms Weight 4.36 gms Shape Round Edge Smooth DieAxis _____° Mint Goa,India CounterMark Galle
	Mitchiner #2144,2145 ; Scholten 1265 ; KM #55

Obverse : Crowned Coat of arms of Portugal divides G A (Goa) within line-dotted-line circles
Countermark GALL (Galle) lower left tilted to left.
Reverse : TA (Tanga Asia) monogram divides [D] S (De Seylão) with year [I64]4 below within line-dotted-line circles.

In accordance to a resolution of the Galle Council dated 1655 April 19th, Indo-Portuguese coins current at rate of 10, 6, and 5 stuivers were countermarked with a round stamp representing a monogram composed of letters GALL after they were tested by competent goldsmiths and declared genuine. A large number of counterfeits were in circulation at the time. Codrington (IX:5,p.109) states the double tanga was 10 Stuivers and the 6 Stuivers seems to be the heavier Malacca Type.

Illustrated in Mitchiner (2144) 164x, and (2145) of 1642.
Catalog of the Colombo Museum No 86 -- 4.22 grams.
Illustrated in Scholten (1265) who lists it as extremely rare (RRR).

Text from
* Ceylon Coins and Currency By H. W. Codrington. Colombo 1924
  Chapter VIII Portuguese - Plate xxx. Page xxx
* The Coins of the Dutch Overseas Territories- 1601-1948
  C. Scholten, 1953, Amsterdam: Jacques Schulman. page xxx-xxx
* Moedas Portuguesas 1128-1988, by Alberto Gomes. Lisbon 1987
* Collection Henry Thomas Grogan, J. Schulman, Auction 23-02-1914.
* Non-Islamic and Western Colonies since 600 AD by by Michael Mitchiner.

I thank Jan Lingen who kindly sent me the 300 dpi scans of these rare coin from his collection and are displayed at xxx dpi.