COLOMBIA 1928 50 CENTAVOS LAZARETO LEPROSARIUM COIN LEPER COLONY

 

COLOMBIA 1928  50 CENTAVOS LAZARETO

 LEPROSARIUM Lepar Colony Coin

LEPROSARIUM COINAGE

PRECIO $ 70.000

Special coinage for use in the three government leper colonies (Lazareto is Spanish) of Agua de Dios, Cano de Lord, and Contratacion.
The hospitals were closed in the late 1950s and patients were allowed to exchange these special coins for regular currency at any bank.

TOKEN

YEAR :1928

VALUE :50 CENTAVOS 

METAL: BRASS

WEIGHT :9.8 G

THICKNESS 1.75 mm

SHAPE : ROUND

ORIENTATIION: COIN ALIGMENT

DEMONETIZED:YES

50.000 Mintage

 REFERE4NCE :KM#L 14

D: 30.2 mm

Leprosy colony money

Leprosy colony money was special money which circulated only in leprosy sanatoriums due to the fear that the leprosy bacteria would infect other people. Leprosy, however, is in fact not easily transmitted by casual contact, and such transmission as there is only happens through long term, constant and intimate contact with leprosy sufferers and not contact with everyday objects used by sufferers.

LEPROSY COLONY MONEY

The original idea of leprosy colony money was the prevention of leprosy in healthy persons. In 1938, Dr. Gordon Alexander Ryrie in Malaysia proved that the paper money was not contaminated with leprosy bacteria and all the banknotes were burned in that country.[

 The first special money

The oldest special money known was made in 1901 for use in three leper colonies of Colombia, called Agua de Dios, Cano de Loro and Contratacion. 5 kinds of coins were known, with 2.5 Centavos, 5 Centavos, 10 Centavos, 20 Centavos, and 50 Centavos. "Republica de Colombia 1901" was engraved. These coins were issued after the first leprosy congress in Berlin in 1897.