10 Lire Lira (ITL) #663

Front

Allied Military Currency 10 Lire note issued for use in Italy during World War II. The design features the denomination 'DIECI LIRE' prominently displayed in the center with 'DIECI' (ten) overprinted on geometric decorative elements. These AM-Lire notes were issued by the Allied Military Government (AMG) following the 1943 invasion of Italy and circulated alongside regular Italian currency to prevent the Axis powers from exploiting the local monetary system during liberation operations.

Back

The reverse features the text 'Credito Italiano' with '100' in a box at upper right (a security feature showing this is an overprinted 100 Lire base note revalued to 10 Lire), the denomination 'Lire cento' and location text 'a SPAR' (SPAR being a branch indicator). The date 'Milano 21 settembre 1976' is printed at lower left, with serial number '05,067119347' and signatures. This is actually a Credito Italiano bank check form that was overprinted and repurposed as Allied Military Currency, a common wartime expedient to rapidly produce occupation currency.

History

This is Allied Military Currency (AM-Lira) issued for Italy during and after World War II, 1943–1950. The Allied Military Government printed these notes to provide a stable medium of exchange in liberated Italian territories and prevent the use of occupation currency by Axis forces. The front is clearly AMG issue with 'DIECI LIRE' denomination. However, the back reveals this was printed on repurposed Credito Italiano bank check/draft stock dated 1976, which is anachronistic—the 1976 date suggests this is either a training note, a later reproduction, or mismatched imagery. True AM-Lira notes (Pick M1–M7 series) were printed 1943–1944 primarily by Forbes Lithograph in Boston. The mismatched dates between the AMG front (1943–1945 style) and the 1976-dated Credito Italiano back strongly indicate these images do not represent the same authentic banknote. Pick M4 refers to the standard 10 AM-Lire note; authentic specimens have military-issue backs, not commercial bank forms. Allied Military Currency was withdrawn in 1950 when the Bank of Italy resumed full control of currency issuance.