Catalog
5 Bolívares
| Issuer | Leproserías Nacionales - Ministerio de Sanidad y Asistencia Social |
|---|---|
| Year | 1940 |
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| Currency | Bolívar (1879-1983) |
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| Obverse description | Printed in blue on white paper, the obverse is dominated by a central vignette of a tropical coastal landscape with palm trees, mountains in the background, and calm waters in the foreground, framed by ornate guilloche borders. The numeral '5' appears in large format at both left and right within decorative cartouches, with the denomination legend 'CINCO BOLIVARES' running along the lower centre. A serial number and series letter are printed in red at lower left, with a manuscript signature at lower right. |
|---|---|
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| Reverse lettering | MINISTERIO DE SANIDAD Y ASISTENCIA SOCIAL LEPROSERIAS NACIONALES 5 BOLIVARES CINCO BOLIVARES SER.C PARA CIRCULAR UNICAMENTE EN LAS LEPROSERIAS IMPT. BELLAS ARTES |
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| Comments |
Venezuela's leprosarium scrip occupies a genuinely strange corner of monetary history. The Leproserías Nacionales issued these notes as internal currency for patients legally confined to isolation colonies — most notably Cabo Blanco and the Isla de Providencia facilities — whose regular money was considered a contagion risk and confiscated upon admission. The scrip could only be spent within the colony, effectively creating a closed monetary loop enforced by quarantine law.
Printed domestically by Imprenta de Bellas Artes, the series runs across several denominations. Survival rates are low — not because of heavy circulation, but because the colonies were eventually disbanded and most remaining stock destroyed along with other patient property.