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2 Lire Aversa; PoW Camp
| Issuer | Campo Concentramento P.G. - Aversa |
|---|---|
| Year | 1942-1943 |
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| Currency | Lira (1861-2001) |
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| Obverse description | Plain letterpress print in black on yellowish paper stock. The camp designation 'Campo concentramento P. G. - Aversa' is typeset across the top, separated from the body by a ruled line. Below, the series designation 'Serie B' and a serial number appear at left and right respectively, above the large central denomination text 'BUONO PER LIRE DUE'. A circular official handstamp ('Bollo d'Ufficio') is applied at lower left, alongside a manuscript signature of the camp commander, with the canteen validity clause printed along the bottom margin. |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | Campo concentramento P. G. - Aversa Serie B BUONO PER LIRE DUE Il Comandante del campo Bollo d'Ufficio Vale solo presso lo spaccio del campo. (Translation: Concentration Camp PoW Aversa. Series B. Voucher for two lire. The camp commander. Official stamp. Valid only at the camp canteen.) |
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| Comments |
Prisoner of war camp scrip from Aversa — a town in the Campania region north of Naples — issued for use within the Italian-run compound during 1942–43. Italy operated an extensive system of campo concentramento facilities for Allied POWs, and internal scrip was the standard mechanism for controlling canteen purchases and preventing real currency from accumulating in prisoner hands. The Aversa camp held primarily British and Commonwealth prisoners taken in the North African campaigns.
Paper camp issues from this period are inherently fragile, and attrition was high — notes were confiscated, destroyed, or simply disintegrated under the conditions of wartime captivity. The armistice of September 1943 abruptly ended Italian administration of these camps, cutting the scrip's operational life short.