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29 Scudi
| Issuer | Sacro Monte della Pietà di Roma |
|---|---|
| Year | 1795 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | Log in to see details |
| Currency | Scudo (1534-1835) |
| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Designer(s) | Log in to see details |
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| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Reverse description | The reverse carries a bold letterpress repeat pattern with the denomination word 'VENTINOVE' and numeral '29' arranged in alternating rows across the entire surface, forming a security underprint visible through the paper. The text from the obverse shows through in mirror image due to the thin paper stock, and a faint embossed or watermark device is discernible at upper centre. |
| Reverse lettering | VENTINOVE 29 VENTINOVE 29 29 VENTINOVE 29 VENTINOVE 29 VENTINOVE 29 VENTINOVE |
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| Comments |
The Sacro Monte della Pietà di Roma was one of the oldest pawnbroking institutions in Europe, founded in 1539 specifically to provide interest-free loans to Rome's poor as an alternative to moneylenders. By the late eighteenth century it had evolved into a significant deposit and lending bank operating under direct papal oversight, issuing fedi di credito — essentially transferable credit certificates — that circulated among merchants and institutions rather than the general population.
The 29-scudi denomination is deliberately odd. Fedi di credito were written for specific loan or deposit amounts rather than round figures, which is why denominations across this series appear arbitrary to modern eyes.