The official site of Italy's central bank

The Banknote Museum

The Banknote Museum was inaugurated at the Bank of Italy's Banknote Printing Department in 2002, the year euro banknotes were introduced and lira notes were withdrawn. The Department currently produces various denominations of euro banknotes using the most advanced equipment and techniques.

The Museum was established thanks to the special efforts of Silvana Balbi de Caro and Gianni Fina and covers more than a hundred years of Italian history with its displays of banknotes, designs, examples of counterfeit notes, and printing materials and equipment. The Museum is therefore a space dedicated to the memory of Italy's industry, work, art, illustrious Italians, science, taste and culture.

This virtual exhibition aims to give greater access to the contents of the Museum which, for security reasons, is not open to the general public.

You can therefore view here all the lira banknotes issued by the Bank of Italy, from the very first notes to be printed with the models and machinery of the old printing works of the Banca Nazionale nel Regno d'Italia right up to the very last issue - the 500,000-lira banknote. There follows a photo gallery of the works, printing machinery and equipment used by the Bank over the years. The section dealing with the legislative framework details the set of laws which, over time, have regulated the various issues. Next, there is a section dedicated to counterfeiting and, lastly, a collection of pictures of the Museum's floor plan and exhibition rooms.

Access to the Banknote Museum, by appointment only, is reserved for experts and academics. For further information and bookings, please telephone: 00 39 06 4792 7003/7245/7835.