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2 Lire
| Issuer | Ministero del Tesoro (Italian Treasury) |
|---|---|
| Year | 1939 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | Log in to see details |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Printer | Istituto Poligrafico dello Stato, Rome, Italy |
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|---|---|
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| Reverse description | The reverse is printed in brown on a fine guilloche ground, with the large numeral '2' repeated in each corner panel alongside serial number blocks. A central rectangular vignette presents a full-length intaglio portrait of Julius Caesar in Roman military dress, rendered in a classical engraved style. Legal warning text appears in two blocks flanking the vignette at lower left and lower right, with the authorizing decree references cited below. |
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| Signature(s) | Grassi, Porena and Cossu |
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| Comments |
The Ministero del Tesoro's small-denomination paper issues of the late 1930s were a direct consequence of metal rationing under the autarky policy — nickel and other coinage metals were increasingly diverted to rearmament, leaving a gap in everyday transactions that these treasury notes were designed to fill. The 2 Lire denomination sat in the awkward middle ground between coin and banknote, and the public never fully accepted paper at that value.
Garrasi designed the series under contract with the Istituto Poligrafico dello Stato, which handled all major Italian state printing from its Rome facilities. The three-signature format — Grassi, Porena, and Cossu — reflects the Treasury's internal authorization structure of the period rather than any central bank involvement; the Banca d'Italia had no role in this issue.