28 Scudi

The Sacro Monte della Pietà di Roma was one of the oldest pawnbroking institutions in Europe, chartered by papal authority in 1539 to provide credit to the poor at regulated rates — a deliberate counter to usury. By the late eighteenth century it had evolved into something closer to a deposit bank, and its printed fedi di credito, of which this is one, functioned as negotiable instruments within the Papal States' financial system.

The 28 Scudi denomination is notably awkward, almost certainly reflecting the face value of a specific pledged deposit rather than a round-figure instrument designed for general circulation. These odd amounts are characteristic of the Monte's fede system.