Collecting Philippine Guerilla Currency

The collection of guerilla paper money was also an area which came rather belatedly to us. As someone commented, they do look like play money and rather crudely printed. Even the paper and the design were not a thing of beauty. After all, they were "emergency currency" and issued rather hastily and in trying times and difficult conditions. We did not bother then to take a second look at them whenever we came across them.

When some dealers came to have large quantities of so many different kinds of these paper money for sale in great condition, we started to purchase some of them. They were being sold rather cheaply. We just wanted one sample of each for the many different kinds available. We then bought another set in order to have it framed in the future as sort of a decoration. It was then that we noticed that each kind had different issuance dates and serial numbers/letters.

When we were able to get a catalogue for these guerilla paper money, we started to collect them seriously and began to look closely at the different variations. In time, we were able to get some which were not even in the catalogue. Collecting guerilla paper money indeed provides a rich variety of materials and is a source of excitement for new and avid collectors.

Currently, there are still some local dealers who sell them below catalogue value as they are just getting rid of their stocks. But once in a while, there are foreign dealers who purchase huge lots in order to sell abroad in trade shows. We even saw them advertised in a Coin Magazine.

We are trying to have as many different varieties in our collection as the supply may soon run out. Some of the notes which were very common a few years ago seems to have run out of stock. Some, we noticed also have high catalogue values especially in uncirculated condition. And dealers have also started to price them higher.

This area of collection may soon even be popular, given that collectors continue to gain more knowledge about the subject. Collectors of Philippine currency will do well to collect them because they were/are part of our history and they did circulate as legal tender. Besides, these may also appeal to collectors who specialize in War memorabilia and to some collectors of US paper money because some were military script issues and printed with "Army of the United States of America".

There are counterfeits of these currency coming out, but these may be an area of specialization as well. These "fakes" sometimes have high catalogue values themselves. And also worth watching out for are the "errors" and/or varieties given the crude process and the not ideal conditions these issues went through.

In this new blog, we will be posting our collections of Philippine Guerilla Paper Money which has now grown. We will be scanning the actual items and try to provide as many varieties mentioned in the catalogue. Postings will be by Provinces or by areas/authorities of issuance. Though items we may come to acquire in the future will also be posted on a later date.

We will try include some information which may also be of guidance to collectors and those who may want to collect. A catalogue value for three conditions (Good, Fine and Extra Fine-XF) will be provided. Recent prices may not be reflective of this value but it provides a comparative pricing level for the many different issues. And if you do have more information, we more than welcome and also request you to please add on to our knowledge.

****For some of these notes, we may also be selling them as we were able to obtain several specimens. Just message us if you are interested.