Catalog
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| Issuer | Ministero della Pubblica Istruzione - Direzione Generale delle Antichità e Belle Arti |
|---|---|
| Year | |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | Log in to see details |
| Currency | Lira (1861-2001) |
| Composition | Log in to see details |
| 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 | REPUBBLICA ITALIANA MINISTERO DELLA PUBBLICA ISTRUZIONE DIREZIONE GENERALE DELLE ANTICHITÀ E BELLE ARTI BIGLIETTO L.150 D'INGRESSO LIRE QUARANTA SERIE B N° 658535 DA STACCARSI DAL CONTROLLO IL VISITATORE È TENUTO A CONSERVARE IL BIGLIETTO FINO ALL'USCITA. IL BIGLIETTO È VALIDO PER UNA SOLA VOLTA E PER IL GIORNO IN CUI È STATO ACQUISTATO. PRESO IL BIGLIETTO È OTTENIBILE IL REGISTRO PER I RECLAMI. NESSUNA MANCIA |
| Reverse description | Reverse printed on plain paper with a faint guilloché underprint pattern in light tones covering the entire surface, providing a subtle security background. No additional text, vignette, or overprint is present on this side. |
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| Signature(s) | Log in to see details |
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| Variants | Log in to see details |
| Comments |
The Ministero della Pubblica Istruzione's role as a currency issuer is an oddity worth pausing on. During the acute small-change shortage that plagued Italy in the early 1970s, several non-banking entities — municipalities, businesses, and government bodies — issued emergency fractional substitutes. This 150 Lire piece belongs to that chaotic interlude, when the Italian state essentially permitted quasi-official scrip to fill the void left by hoarded coins.
The Direzione Generale delle Antichità e Belle Arti, a division responsible for cultural heritage administration, had no business issuing circulating media — yet here it is.