COINS FROM MALACCA. 187 
Malacca was taken by the Portuguese under Albuquerque 
in 1511 and held by them until 1641. The kings of Portugal 
during that period were :— 
Emmanuel, 1495—1521 
John III, 1521—1557 
Sebastian, 1557—1578 
and four others to whom it will not be necessary to refer in 
this paper. From 1641 to 1795 the Dutch held possession of it, 
from 1795 to 1818 the English, from 1818 to 1824 the Dutch 
again, and since then the English. 
The coins in the collection which date from the time of the 
first Dutch occupation are nearly all well known, but it is other- 
wise with a large number of tin coins struck by the Portuguese 
in Malacca itself; in fact as I said before, it seems doubtful 
whether any more of these coins exist at the present day. 
However, the record of the first mint established by Albuquer- 
que in Malacca, as given in his “ Commentaries,” and quoted 
below, leaves no doubt as to their identity. 
This mint was the only one ever established in Malacca by 
Europeans. This was in 1511, immediately after the conquest 
of the place. In the previous year, 1510, Albuquerque had 
conquered Goa, and had established a mint there, and as the circum- 
stances under which those two mints were founded were very 
similar, and since, as will be shown below, the Malacca coins 
were struck after the same pattern as those in Goa, although 
not of the same metals, it may be well first to shortly narrate 
the history of the founding of the mint in Goa. 
Soon after Goa had been taken in 1510 the principal Moors 
and Hindus of the country went to Albuquerque and told him 
how the trade of the people suffered because there was no 
proper currency, begging him to coin some money or at least 
to permit the coinage of the Cabaio, the former ruler, to pass 
current, which he had forbidden. Albuquerque thereupon 
called a meeting of the goldsmiths, some Portuguese experts, 
and the native merchants, and discussed the matter, after which 
he gave orders for the coinage of money in gold, silver and 
copper, and on the one side they were to stamp a cross of the 
order of Christ, and on the other asphere,—the device of the 
King D, Manuel. And when the money was ready (March 12th, 
R. A. Soce,, No. 39, 1903. 
