Catalog
5 Gulden
| Issuer | Republik Maluku Selatan (Republic of the South Moluccas) |
|---|---|
| Year | 1942 |
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| Shape | Rectangular |
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| Obverse description | This note is a Japanese Occupation issue of 5 Gulden overprinted for use by the Republik Maluku Selatan, with a large black two-line handstamp reading 'REPUBLIK MALUKU SELATAN R.M.S.' applied diagonally across the face. The underlying green-tinted note carries the denomination '5' in the upper corners and the serial number in two positions, with the plate letters 'SG' flanking a central panel and Japanese government text printed along the lower margin. The heavy overprint partially obscures the original Japanese inscription 'JAPANSCHE' visible beneath. |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | REPUBLIK MALUKU SELATAN R.M.S. VIJF GULDEN SG 南方開発金庫 |
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| Comments |
The Republik Maluku Selatan was a short-lived unilateral declaration of independence proclaimed on 25 April 1950, following the Netherlands' transfer of sovereignty to the Republic of Indonesia. It was never internationally recognized. The notes attributed to the RMS — including this 5 Gulden — are almost certainly repurposed Netherlands Indies wartime issues, not purpose-printed currency of an independent state. The 1942 date places production squarely within the Japanese occupation period of the Dutch East Indies.
Attribution to the RMS is a cataloging convention more than a historical reality. The political entity that supposedly issued it collapsed militarily by November 1950.