Eritrean tallero
Currency of Eritrea from 1890 to 1921
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Description
Five lire coins, engraved by Filippo Speranza, feature King Umberto I of Italy with the lettering UMBERTO I RE D'ITALIA · 1896 on the obverse, and an eagle with a shield on the reverse. They weigh 28.1250 g with an actual silver weight of 0.7234 oz of .800 fineness, and have a 40 mm diameter with a thickness of 3.1 mm.[1][2]
From 1885, banknotes denominated in lire were issued by the Italian colonial authorities. In 1890, the silver tallero, patterned after the Maria Theresa thaler, was introduced (together with 50 centesimi, 1 and 2 lire coins). The last tallero were minted in 1918. In 1921, the tallero was abandoned and Italian currency circulated alone until banknotes were issued in lire in 1938.[3][4]
