Catalog
See full images - free registration
Continue with Google - no registration!
or register with email
Why register? Just to keep bots out of our catalog. Your email stays private - we will never share it or send you anything uninvited. We guarantee you that!
10 Cents USARJ
| Issuer | United States Army, Japan (USARJ) - N.C.O. Open Mess |
|---|---|
| Year | 1957-1975 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | Log in to see details |
| Currency | Log in to see details |
| Composition | Paper (beige) |
| Size | Log in to see details |
| Shape | Log in to see details |
| Printer | Log in to see details |
| Designer(s) | Log in to see details |
| Engraver(s) | Log in to see details |
| In circulation to | Log in to see details |
| Reference(s) | Log in to see details |
| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | USARJ N.C.O. OPEN MESS NOT GOOD IF DETACHED 10 CENTS |
| Reverse description | Log in to see details |
| Reverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Signature(s) | Log in to see details |
| Protection type | Log in to see details |
| Protection description | Four punch holes pierced through the serial number area to indicate use or cancellation. |
| Variants | Log in to see details |
| Comments |
N.C.O. Open Mess scrip was a parallel currency operating entirely within the non-commissioned officers' club system of U.S. Army installations in occupied and post-treaty Japan. These notes circulated as vouchers redeemable for food, drink, and services within the mess — a closed economic loop designed to prevent dollar-denominated currency from leaking into the Japanese black market, a genuine problem during the occupation years that persisted as a policy concern well into the 1970s.
Punch cancellation on surviving examples indicates redemption or retirement from service use rather than destruction — a practical accounting measure, and the reason most collectible specimens carry the hole.