Name/Title
United States Military Payment Certificate Five Cents-1954-1958Entry/Object ID
1976.149.004.dDescription
United States Military Payment Certificate Five Cents-1954-1958Context
Military payment certificates, or MPC, were a form of currency used to pay U.S. military personnel in certain foreign countries. They were used in one area or another from a few months after the end of World War II until a few months after the end of U.S. participation in the Vietnam War – from 1946 until 1973. MPCs evolved from Allied Military Currency as a response to the large amounts of US Dollars circulated by American servicemen in post-World War II Europe. The local citizens might not trust local currencies, as the future of their governments was unclear. Preferring a stable currency like U.S. dollars, local civilians often accepted payment in dollars for less than the accepted conversion rates. Dollars became more favorable to hold, inflating the local currencies and thwarting plans to stabilize local economies. Contributing to this problem was the fact that troops were being paid in dollars, which they could convert in unlimited amounts to the local currency with merchants at the floating (black market) conversion rate, which was much more favorable to the GIs than the government fixed conversion rate. To reduce profiteering from currency arbitrage, the U.S. military devised the MPC program. MPC were paper money initially denominated in amounts of 5¢, 10¢, 25¢, 50¢, $1, $5, and $10; a $20 note was added in 1968. Unlike US currency, these certificates were issued under the authority of the Department of War (later Department of Defense) rather than the Department of the Treasury. Consequently, they do not bear the US Treasury seal found on virtually every example of US civilian currency. MPCs were fully convertible to U.S. dollars upon leaving a designated MPC zone, and convertible to local currencies when going on leave (but not vice versa). It was illegal for unauthorized personnel to possess MPC, and that policy, in theory, eliminated U.S. dollars from local economiesCollection
BanknotesMade/Created
Date made
1946 - 1973Time Period
20th CenturyPlace of Origin
Country
United States of AmericaContinent
North AmericaManufacture Method
LithographyBanknote Details
Banknote Type
Military PaymentCurrency
United States DollarDenomination
5 CentsIssuing Authority
Department of WarProduction Dates
May 25, 1954 - May 27, 1958Serial Number
11995815Obverse
Description
A Helmeted figure at leftTranscription
MILITARY PAYMENT CERTIFICATE
FIVE
CENTS
SERIES 521
FOR USE ONLY IN UNITED STATES MILITARY ESTABLISHMENTS - BY UNITED STATES AUTHORIZED PERSONNEL IN ACCORDANCE WITH APPLICABLE RULES AND REGULATIONSReverse
Description
Bust of a woman at the centerTranscription
MILITARY PAYMENT CERTIFICATE
FIVE FIVE
CENTS CENTS
SERIES 521
FOR USE ONLY IN UNITED STATES MILITARY ESTABLISHMENTS - BY UNITED STATES AUTHORIZED PERSONNEL IN ACCORDANCE WITH APPLICABLE RULES AND REGULATIONSLexicon
Nomenclature 4.0
Nomenclature Secondary Object Term
Money, PaperNomenclature Primary Object Term
MoneyNomenclature Class
Exchange MediaNomenclature Category
Category 08: Communication ObjectsOther Names and Numbers
Other Numbers
Number Type
Pick NumberOther Number
M29Dimensions
Dimension Description
OverallWidth
2-1/8 inLength
4-5/16 in
