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The Sacro Monte della Pietà di Roma was a papal pawnbroking institution, founded in 1539, that issued its own paper obligations long before most European states had formalized banknote systems. These notes functioned as negotiable receipts against deposited collateral — a hybrid between a pawn ticket and a bearer instrument — and circulated among merchants and institutions in Rome who trusted the Monte's backing by the Apostolic Chamber.

By the 1780s the Monte was operating under increasing fiscal strain as the broader finances of the Papal States deteriorated. Notes from this period are genuinely scarce; many were redeemed or destroyed as the institution's role contracted sharply following the French occupation of 1798.