Museum objects
0 shown · 5 cited but not shown. An image only appears here if it is openly
licensed and confirmed to depict the object we claim. Otherwise we cite it and link you to
the museum — we would rather show you nothing than show you the wrong thing.
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1861 5 Lire
Museo della Zecca di Roma
image failed verification (wrong object) — cited, not shown
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1861 5 Lire Coin (Florence Mint)
Museo della Zecca di Roma · 1861 5 Lire · 1861
One of the first coins struck under the newly unified Kingdom of Italy's monetary system.
Before this coin, 'Italy' was a collection of separate kingdoms with separate money. This coin is the first proof that unification was more than a map — it was a currency too.
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AMC Italy 1943
Referenced via Wikimedia Commons
image failed verification (wrong object) — cited, not shown
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Allied Military Currency (Italy, 1943)
Referenced via Wikimedia Commons · AMC Italy 1943 · 1943
Emergency currency issued by Allied forces in Italy during World War II occupation.
For a moment, Matteo wasn't even printed by his own country — a stark reminder of how fragile national identity can be during war.
Garibaldi's Red Shirt
Musei di Genova · Cat. 590 · c. 1860
An original red shirt associated with Giuseppe Garibaldi and his 'Redshirts' who fought for Italian unification.
This shirt belongs to the man who made Matteo possible — Garibaldi's unification campaign is the reason there was ever a single lira to unify at all.
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High-denomination lira notes
Referenced via Banca d'Italia numismatic archive
image failed verification (wrong object) — cited, not shown
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Italian Hyperinflation-Era Banknotes (1970s-1990s)
Referenced via Banca d'Italia numismatic archive · High-denomination lira notes · 1970s-1990s
High-denomination lira notes (100,000 and 500,000 lire) reflecting decades of inflation before the euro's adoption.
By the end, Matteo needed six zeros just to buy a cup of coffee — proof of how much trust can erode, one small devaluation at a time.
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Museo del Risorgimento collection
Museo Nazionale del Risorgimento Italiano
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Museo del Risorgimento
Museo Nazionale del Risorgimento Italiano · Museo del Risorgimento collection · Founded 1878
A museum in Turin dedicated to the history of Italian unification, the political movement that created Matteo's country.
Everything Matteo represents — one currency, one nation — is documented here in the city where the movement to unify Italy began.
Primary sources
The documents themselves. We link and quote — that is citation, and it needs no licence.
Wikipedia: Italian Lira
encyclopedia_entry · Ongoing · Wikipedia contributors · Wikipedia
Overview reference on the history of the Italian lira from unification to the euro.
A general history of the Italian lira from its creation to its replacement by the euro.
Garibaldi and the Thousand
historical_account · 1909 · George Macaulay Trevelyan · Internet Archive
Classic historical narrative of Garibaldi's military campaign that helped unify Italy.
A classic history book about Garibaldi's military campaign that helped unite Italy.
Banca d'Italia Numismatic Archive
official_publication · Ongoing · Banca d'Italia · Banca d'Italia
Central bank archive documenting the design and issuance history of Italian lira banknotes.
Italy's central bank's own official records of every lira banknote it ever issued.
Museo Nazionale del Risorgimento Italiano Archive
museum_record · Ongoing · Museo Nazionale del Risorgimento · Museo Nazionale del Risorgimento, Turin
Historical archive documenting the Italian unification movement.
A museum's official archive about the movement that united Italy into one country.
Wikimedia Commons: Allied Military Currency
photo_archive · 1943 · Wikimedia Commons contributors · Wikimedia Commons
Archive of wartime emergency currency issued in occupied Italy.
A photo archive of emergency wartime money used in Italy during World War II.
Where this money travelled
Matteo's lira was born from Italian unification in 1861, minted first in Florence and Turin, and lived through wars, hyperinflation, and its final retirement for the euro in 2002.
Rome (Museo della Zecca)41.9028, 12.4964
Turin (Museo del Risorgimento)45.0703, 7.6869
Florence Mint43.7696, 11.2558
Marsala, Sicily37.8003, 12.4318
Frankfurt (ECB)50.1109, 8.6821
What we don't know
The page no competitor will build.
- 5 of 5 objects on this page are cited but not shown — either the rights are not cleared, or we could not verify that an available image really depicts the object. We would rather show you nothing than show you the wrong thing.
- 1 source(s) here are Wikipedia — a tertiary source. It is a pointer, not our evidence. These are being replaced with the primary documents Wikipedia itself cites.
