Catalog
800 Scudi
| Issuer | Sacro Monte della Pietà di Roma |
|---|---|
| Year | 1788 |
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| Shape | Rectangular |
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| Obverse description | Entirely typeset in letterpress, the note is framed by a decorative border with a repeating ornamental pattern. The denomination '800' appears in a central cartouche at the top, flanked by guilloche panels, with the full value 'Ottocento' rendered in a bold display typeface within a central panel. The issuer's name 'S. MONTE DELLA PIETA DI ROMA' is set in large roman capitals, followed by the text of the promise to pay, the date, register number, and handwritten endorsements and signatures of officials. |
|---|---|
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| Protection type | Embossed seal |
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| Comments |
The Sacro Monte della Pietà di Roma was a papal pawnbroking institution, founded in the sixteenth century to provide low-interest loans to the poor as an alternative to moneylenders. By the late eighteenth century it had long since evolved into a significant credit institution, and its fedi di credito — of which this is one — functioned effectively as high-denomination transferable instruments among Rome's merchant and banking classes. The 800 Scudi figure places this well above everyday commercial use.
These notes were handwritten on printed forms, completed by bank officials, and authenticated with an embossed dry seal. No two examples are identical. The absence of intaglio printing or complex anti-counterfeiting typography reflects both the institution's conservative methods and the reality that circulation at this level depended on personal trust and institutional reputation rather than technical security.