Friday, November 19, 2010

BOHOL

On May 22, 1942, Japanese occuation forces established garrisons at Tagbilaran, the capital , and Guindulman where they operated manganese mines.

On January 9, 1943 guerilla officers and unsurrendered provincial officials established a free provincial government with Conrado D. Marapao as Governor. Eventually its jurisdiction was established over 34 of the 36 municipalities.

Just prior to the surrender, President Quezon had authorized Bohol to issue 150,000 pesos in emergency currency. This authority was the basis for printing currency to finance the free government and guerilla force. The Currency Board consisted of Prov. Auditor Dalmacio Ramos as Chairman, with Prov Fiscal Jose C. Borromeo and Acting Prov. Treasurer Doroteo Toledo as Members.

In June, 1943 radio contact was established with President Quezon who had autorized an additional 200,000 pesos. In September president Quezon authorized an additional 1,000,000 pesos. The printing took place at the Municipality of Carmen. Notes were printed in gray-blak to intense black on Manila paper of varying thickness, except for a few hundred note on white paper. Serial numbers were applied in two different styles of type. As an anti-counterfeiting measure, various arrngements of countersignatures were applied on the back. Nearly three times the authorized amount was printed, and of this, 3,710,789.55 pesos were officially issued, when printing was abruptly halted by the Japanese.

On June 24, 1944 large Japanese forces landed at seven different places. At Carmen they captured Auditor Ramos and Fiscal Borromeo along with printing press, plates and tens of thousands of pesos in finished and partly printed currency. These notes were soon in circulation.

When redemption took place after the war, the notes captured by the Japanese were specifically excluded for redemption. Thus many of them may be found with pen inscription excess, fallen, or fallen to Japanese as well as COUNTERFEIT rubber stamped.

Somehow, quantities of 5 Pesos notes (serial #203,572 to 208,764) and 10 Pesos notes (serial # 192,555 to 208,741) were saved from capture. These were officially issued even though most of them did not have proper countersignatures.

Counterfeiting began shortly after the notes were issued and soon became rampant. Counterfeits of the 50 centavos and 1 Peso SERIES 1942 are rare, but the 5 and 10 Pesos notes were extensively counterfeited, and there are numerous varieties of each, ranging from crude to excellent. Many may be identified by crude serial numbers. Most may be identified because of the fake countersignatures not coinciding with the correct ones for a particular serial number group. Not only were Bohol notes counterfeited, but also those of Mindanao and Misamis Occidental, and possibly notes of Iloilo and Cebu.


From Catalogue

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