Template:POTD/2016-09-22

Picture of the day

Card money, printed on plain cardboard or playing cards, was issued from the 17th to the 19th century to supplement the supply of money in several countries and colonies.

This playing card from Dutch Guiana (now Suriname), dated 1801, has a face value of one guilder. In that colony, card money was first issued in 1761, initially backed by bills of exchange from the Netherlands; but later it was released unsecured, and inflation was an issue for much of the currency's lifetime, with the value fluctuating wildly until it was replaced with paper money in 1826 and formally discontinued two years later.Card: Government of Dutch Guiana; image courtesy of the National Numismatic Collection