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5 Piastres Italian occupation WWII
| Issuer | Cassa Mediterranea di Credito per l'Egitto |
|---|---|
| Year | 1942 |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Size | 110 × 54 mm |
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|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | CASSA MEDITERRANEA DI CREDITO PER L'EGITTO صندوق البحر المتوسط التسليفي لمصر BUONO PER CINQUE PIASTRE هذا البنو سيوى خمسة قروش صاغ IL PRESENTE BUONO DEVE ESSERE ACCETTATO IN PAGAMENTO PER IL SUO VALORE NOMINALE من الواجب قبول هذا البنو بالرفع عن قيمة الاسمي |
| Reverse description | The left panel carries a large intaglio vignette of a stylized ear of grain or pine cone rendered in fine engraved lines, set within a hatched rectangular frame. The central and right fields repeat the bilingual issuing authority inscription and denomination in Italian and Arabic, with the serial number in two parts at the lower edge flanking a central oval underprint. |
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| Comments |
The Cassa Mediterranea di Credito per l'Egitto was a purpose-built occupation currency authority, created by Mussolini's government in anticipation of capturing Egypt — it was, in effect, an institution designed for a conquest that never happened. Rommel's failure at El Alamein in late 1942 left these notes functionally useless before they could circulate at any meaningful scale.
The entire series (P#M1 through M4) was printed in Rome and likely never formally released in Egypt at all. Surviving examples exist because the notes were never deployed, not because they survived heavy use.