Catalog
44 Scudi
| Issuer | S. Monte della Pietà di Roma |
|---|---|
| Year | 1792 |
| Type | Standard circulation banknote |
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| Obverse description | Letterpress-printed note within an ornate engraved rectangular border of interlocking geometric patterns. The central text panel bears the issuer's name in large display type reading S. MONTE DELLA PIETÀ DI ROMA, with the denomination QUARANTAQUATTRO set within a decorative cartouche flanked by repeating ornamental devices. The date line PRIMO FERRARO MILLE SETTECENTO NOVANTADUE appears above the main inscription, and the numeral 44 is printed in a framed tablet at the upper centre; handwritten annotations including signatures, registration numbers, and endorsements appear throughout the note. |
|---|---|
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| Reverse description | Plain paper reverse printed in black letterpress with the denomination repeated multiple times in both numeral and word form across the entire surface, arranged in horizontal registers. The numeral 44 and the word QUARANTAQUATTRO alternate in a systematic pattern filling the note, serving as a simple anti-counterfeiting measure. Manuscript endorsements and handwritten notations are present in the central area. |
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| Comments |
The Monte di Pietà in Rome was one of the oldest pawnbroking institutions in Europe, established in the mid-fifteenth century under papal patronage to provide credit to the poor at controlled rates. By the late eighteenth century it had evolved into a quasi-banking body issuing fedi di credito — faith certificates — that functioned as transferable paper instruments rather than conventional banknotes. The 44 Scudi denomination is an odd figure by any standard and almost certainly reflects the redeemable value of a specific pledged deposit rather than a round-currency issue.
These instruments circulated primarily among merchants and institutions in Rome, not the general public. The French occupation of Rome in 1798 disrupted the Monte's operations severely, and many outstanding certificates were never redeemed.