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| Issuer | U.S. Armed Forces Officers' Open Mess, Teheran, Iran |
|---|---|
| Year | 1960-1979 |
| Type | Vouchers |
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| Obverse description | Violet paper with black letterpress text. The denomination numeral '25' appears in a ruled box at right, with 'CENTS' below. Institution and location inscriptions fill the upper portion; a cautionary 'NOT GOOD IF DETACHED' notice appears at lower left, with a red serial number to its right. |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | U. S. ARMED FORCES OFFICERS' OPEN MESS TEHERAN, IRAN - APO 205 NOT GOOD IF DETACHED 25 CENTS |
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| Comments |
Officers' Open Mess scrip was issued at U.S. military installations to restrict spending to on-base facilities — a practical tool for keeping dollars out of local black markets and preventing exchange-rate manipulation by host-country vendors. The Teheran mess operated under this system throughout the period of close U.S.-Iranian military cooperation under the Shah, which collapsed abruptly with the 1979 revolution. Any scrip still in circulation at that point became instantly worthless and unredeemable.
These pieces were never meant to leave the mess hall. The survival rate is low for exactly that reason.