Catalog
5 Dollars
| Issuer | Treasury of Liberia |
|---|---|
| Year | 1876-1880 |
| Type | Standard circulation banknote |
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| Obverse description | Central vignette at upper centre presents a sailing ship and palm tree, rendered in fine intaglio engraving. The denomination is stated in letterpress at left and right margins, with the issuing authority inscription spread across the upper portion of the note. The body of the note carries the payment obligation text in a combination of script and roman typefaces. |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | REPUBLIC OF LIBERIA RECEIVABLE FOR DUTIES ON DEMAND AT THE TREASURY DEPARTMENT THE TREASURER OF THE REPUBLIC OF LIBERIA WILL PAY TO BEARER FIVE DOLLARS FIVE DOLLARS |
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| Comments |
The Treasury of Liberia's paper currency issues of this period occupy a peculiar corner of West African monetary history. Liberia had been using U.S. coin as its de facto circulating medium for decades, and these treasury notes were an attempt to assert a functioning domestic currency — one that never really took hold. Public confidence was low, redemption in specie was unreliable, and most notes returned to the treasury quickly or simply disappeared from circulation without formal cancellation.
Pick 15 is genuinely rare. The five-dollar denomination sits at the top of this short-lived series, and surviving examples in any condition are seldom encountered at auction.