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100 Lire
| Issuer | Banca d'Italia |
|---|---|
| Year | 1896-1926 |
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| Designer(s) | Rinaldo Barbetti |
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| Obverse description | Tan and brown intaglio-engraved note with an ornate decorative border. At upper left, a large stylized letter 'B' forms a vertical pillar flanked by allegorical figures in neo-Renaissance style; at lower left a reclining female allegory and at right a standing male figure with caduceus. The centre carries the bold denomination 'CENTO LIRE' above the bearer clause, with two signature lines for the Direttore Generale and the Cassiere, and a red circular vignette at bottom centre bearing a female portrait in profile. An oval watermark area occupies the upper right field, framed by elaborate guilloche scrollwork. |
|---|---|
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| Reverse description | Brown and tan intaglio engraving enclosed within a finely ruled geometric border. Two large oval fields dominate the composition: the left oval is a plain watermark reserve, and the right oval contains a vignette of a standing female allegory on a pedestal attended by putti. Between them the numeral '100' is printed in large bold figures, while at lower centre a circular cartouche surmounted by an eagle bears the authorising decree inscription in red. Flanking scroll vignettes below each oval carry groups of reclining figures in a neo-classical style, and the inscription 'LIRE CENTO' appears in the upper margin. |
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| Comments |
Pick 39 spans thirty years of Italian monetary history and an extraordinary sequence of dated issues — over fifty distinct signature combinations, more than almost any other Banca d'Italia type. The sheer volume of printing dates reflects both the sustained demand for 100 Lire notes through the Giolittian period and the enormous wartime and immediate postwar inflationary pressure that ran from 1914 through the early 1920s. The brief Canovai & Sacchi interruption in 1919 marks the only period Bonaldo Stringher — governor for over three decades — was temporarily absent from the signing authority.
Barbetti's design and Ballarini's engraving were executed at the Officina Carte Valori in Rome, making this an entirely domestic production at a time when many Italian issues still relied on foreign printers.