Catalog
5 Rupiah
| Issuer | Governor of Sumatra, Bukittinggi |
|---|---|
| Year | 1948 |
| Type | Standard circulation banknote |
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| Obverse description | Green note with the large word LIMA (Five) in bold letterpress at centre, surmounted by a banner scroll bearing the inscription TANDA PEMBAJARAN JANG SAH. Numeral 5 appears in each corner against a fine guilloche underprint with radiating line patterns. The lower margin carries the text BUKITTINGGI / GUBERNUR SUMATERA / 1-1-1948, with a facsimile signature to the right of centre. |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | TANDA PEMBAJARAN JANG SAH LIMA RUPIAH BUKITTINGGI GUBERNUR SUMATERA 1-1-1948 5 |
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| Comments |
The Governor of Sumatra issued this note from Bukittinggi — then functioning as the provisional capital of the Indonesian Republic's Sumatran administration — during the Dutch military offensives known in Indonesian historiography as the "Police Actions." The Republican government had been pushed out of Yogyakarta, and regional governors were authorized to issue their own emergency currency to keep the independence economy functioning. These notes circulated in genuinely hostile conditions, with Dutch forces actively attempting to suppress Republican financial infrastructure.
Survival rates are poor for the obvious reason: paper currency issued under occupation pressure rarely makes it out intact. The S-prefix in the Pick reference denotes its regional, rather than central Republican, authority.