| Description : The commemorative coin pays tribute to the circumnavigation
of the world begun in 1519 by order of Carlos' I, King of Spain, under the leadership of the Poruguese giant
Ferdinand Magellan (∼1480‐1521), who was to find a western route to the Spice Islands. The fleet of five ships
and 270 men circumnavigated South America for the first time in 1520 through the "Strait of Magellan" and crossed the
Pacific in 1521. Magellan had already sailed from the west to the Malay Archipelago (and back) in 1505‐1512, which is
further east than Mactan, Philippines, where he died in battle in 1521 ‐ thus he had crossed all the meridians of the
earth westwards and, with a seven‐year interruption, completed almost a complete circumnavigation of the globe. Juan
Sebastián Elcano (1476‐1528) completed the expedition on the Nao Victoria in 1522 and provided proof of
the spherical shape of the Earth. The coin shows Magellan in three‐quarter profile, surrounded by the words
"CIRCUM NAVEGACÃO" (circumnavigation of the globe), "1519 FERNÃO ♦ DE ♦ MAGALHÃES" (right)
and "2019 ♦ PORTUGAL" (left). At the top, a stylised armillary sphere is depicted as a sign of Portugal's great
attachment to seafaring, a navigational device from the time of Portugal's sailing of the world's oceans. Below is "INCM"
the mint mark of the Portuguese mint Imprensa Nacional‐ Casa da Moeda S.A. in Lisbon and the signet
"L.F. ABREU" of the coin designer Luís Filipe de Abreu. |
