Catalog
100 Lire Small cheque
| Issuer | Cassa di Risparmio della Repubblica di San Marino |
|---|---|
| Year | 1977 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | Log in to see details |
| Currency | Log in to see details |
| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Size | Log in to see details |
| Shape | Rectangular |
| 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 | State emblem of San Marino at upper centre above a guilloche underprint incorporating an allegorical vignette. Handwritten signature of an issuing official appears below the emblem. Inscriptions identify the issuing institution at the foot of the note. |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Reverse description | State emblem of San Marino at top centre, with a cartographic vignette of the territory of San Marino rendered in light guilloche underprint, showing the internal cantonal divisions marked by heraldic shields. |
| Reverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Signature(s) | Log in to see details |
| Protection type | Log in to see details |
| Protection description | Log in to see details |
| Variants | Log in to see details |
| Comments |
San Marino's Cassa di Risparmio issued these small-denomination fiduciary cheques in 1977 to address a chronic shortage of low-value coinage in everyday circulation — a problem shared by several Italian and Italian-adjacent economies during the 1970s, when metal costs and hoarding repeatedly outpaced mint output. They functioned as token substitutes accepted locally rather than as formal banknotes, giving the institution a quasi-monetary role it was not originally chartered to perform.
The 100 Lire denomination placed these squarely in the range of daily small transactions. Survival rates are surprisingly low given their recent vintage — most were spent into oblivion or discarded once the coin shortage eased.