Catalog
1 Fiorino
| Issuer | Prefettura di Finanza, Regno Lombardo-Veneto |
|---|---|
| Year | 1859 |
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| Value | 1 Florin (Fiorino) |
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| Obverse description | The obverse is enclosed by an elaborate intaglio border of acanthus scrollwork and rocaille ornaments, surmounted at the top centre by the Imperial Austrian double-headed eagle. Denomination numerals '1' appear in the upper corners within the heading 'Valuta austriaca.', with the title 'Vaglia di fiorino UNO' above a text body authorizing acceptance as legal tender for the 1859 Lombardo-Venetian Kingdom loan per sovereign resolution of 7 May 1859. The note is dated 'Verona, il 15 Giugno 1859,' issued by the 'Prefettura di Finanza' and carries a manuscript signature of the President. |
|---|---|
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| Reverse description | The reverse is uniface, printed on plain white paper with no typographic or engraved design elements, the surface left entirely blank aside from natural aging and fold marks consistent with circulation use. |
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| Comments |
The Prefettura di Finanza notes of 1859 were emergency small-denomination issues produced as Austrian imperial finances buckled under the strain of the Second Italian War of Independence. The Austrian administration in Lombardy-Venetia was haemorrhaging silver from circulation — the population was hoarding coin — and these prefectural notes were a stopgap measure to keep petty transactions functioning in occupied territory already slipping away from Habsburg control.
Lombardy was ceded to Sardinia by the Armistice of Villafranca just months after this note's issue. Whether any significant quantity survived the transition of administrations is not well documented.