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5 Dollars, Confederate States of America, 1863

National Museum of American History

Object Details

engraver
Keatinge & Ball
Description
Most Confederate notes bore a single issue date. Those created in 1863 bore two-the official date of the issue, April 6, 1863, and the actual month when the notes were placed in circulation, ranging from April 1863 to February 1864. The official date was part of the basic design. The actual date was applied in red, ordinarily towards the right-hand margin. The greater precision was probably intended to create a greater accountability as to how much currency was being issued, and when.
But the paper used to create new currency wasn't any better than that used to create the old. And a society that roughly handled its paper money but had no more durable alternatives was likely to continue having problems holding things together. An amazing range of discarded paper objects was put into service.
Glue was slapped onto everything from old telegrams to a playbill for a performance of the Hunchback of Notre Dame at some forgotten theater. Out-of-date letters were always popular, particularly if they had writing on both sides of the sheet. And so William Perryman's letter home was recycled by a friend, or a relative, to keep this particular Confederate five in circulation a few turns longer.
Location
Currently not on view
Credit Line
U.S. National Archives and Records Administration (through John W. Carlin)
1863
ID Number
1998.0063.0045
catalog number
1998.0063.0045
accession number
1998.0063
serial number
36663
Object Name
Paper Money
note
Physical Description
paper (overall material)
ink (overall material)
Measurements
overall: 78 mm x 175 mm; 3 1/16 in x 6 7/8 in
Place Made
United States: Virginia, Richmond
See more items in
Work and Industry: National Numismatic Collection
Coins
Numismatics
Coins, Currency and Medals
Legendary Coins
National Museum of American History
Record ID
nmah_1289283
Metadata Usage (text)
CC0
GUID (Link to Original Record)
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ng49ca746ab-938c-704b-e053-15f76fa0b4fa
There are restrictions for re-using this image. For more information, visit the Smithsonian's Terms of Use page .
International media Interoperability Framework
IIIF provides researchers rich metadata and media viewing options for comparison of works across cultural heritage collections. Visit the IIIF page to learn more.
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