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29 Scudi Banco do S. Spirito di Roma
| Issuer | Banco di Santo Spirito di Roma |
|---|---|
| Year | 1786-1796 |
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| Value | Log in to see details |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| In circulation to | Log in to see details |
| Reference(s) | P#S403 |
| Obverse description | Papal coat of arms of Pope Pius VI occupies the upper left, with a cardinal's coat of arms at upper right; the date appears at upper centre. The body of the note carries the denomination and printed text in letterpress, characteristic of late eighteenth-century Roman banking instruments. |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
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| Protection description | Herringbone pattern; inscription BANCO DI S. SPIRITO; inscription S. SPIRITO; bank coat of arms; double cross; dove. |
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| Comments |
The Banco di Santo Spirito, founded in 1605 under Pope Paul V, is among the oldest chartered banks in Europe. By the late eighteenth century it functioned as the principal deposit and exchange institution of the Papal States, and its printed cedole — of which this is one — circulated among Roman merchants and ecclesiastical administrators as a practical substitute for specie. The odd denomination of 29 Scudi is not a misprint; the bank issued notes in unconventional face values tied to specific deposit transactions rather than round monetary units, a practice that distinguished its paper from more standardized state currencies.
The watermark remains the primary security device, consistent across the series.