| Obverse Design |
Book cover has a large rectangle on the upper part of the cover. Centered above the rectangle in small letters it says "5407" which appears to be the form number. Off to the right it says "MR 998". Within the rectangle is the title of the book in five lines. The top line says "THE". The second line in a larger size font says "PANAMA CANAL". The third line in a small size font says "SUPPLY DEPARTMENT". The next line says "COMMISSARY". The fifth line says "COUPON BOOK" with the seal of the Canal Zone appearing between the two words. Centered below the seal it says "VALUE". Next is a design with a line above, a line below and a swirl design on either side. In the space in the center of this design it says "$5.00". Below that it says "U.S. CURRENCY". There are short vertical lines on either side of the "VALUE $5.00 U.S. CURRENCY" area. Between the edge of the rectangle and the lines is sideways writing you can read from the left. On the right side (which would become the top if you tilted the book to the left) it says "THIS BOOK IS NOT" and "TRANSFERABLE" in two lines. On the left side (or bottom) there are three lines which say "and will not be hon-", "ored unless issued by" and "an authorized person". On the lower right of the book cover in sideways writing it says: "No 613540" with a period under the "o". This is the serial number for the example above. Below the rectangle in small letters it says "Use Validating Stamp in this space.". The book has been stamped with a rectangular stamp. The stamp has a rectangle within a rectangle design. In the center space is the date "March 29, 1945" in the example above. In the space to the left of center it says "CLERK". In the space below center it says "NO 185" in the example above. |
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| Other Details | This book had 500 chits on one continuous folded over page. Each chit was worth one cent. See examples of the first page inside the book and the back cover below. The back cover has the rules for use of these chits. | ||||
| Color | White or manilla with black ink; the serial number and stamp are in black ink as well. | Material | Light-weight cardboard. | Size and Shape | Rectangular, approximately 70 mm wide by 142 mm high. |
| Dates Issued | This book was issued on March 29, 1945. | ||||
| Issurer | Panama Canal Company, Supply Department Commissary. The commissaries served as grocery stores and general department stores for Panama Canal employees. | ||||
| Mintage | Unknown. | ||||
| Rarity | Very Rare. | Manufacturer | U.S. Government Printing Office. | Source | Plowman collection. |
| Varieties | This is the only known variety. | ||||
| Function | Book of chits used to purchase commissary (grocery and general store) supplies. | ||||
| Notes |
For population count, known specimens are as follows:
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Scale: 4 pixels equals one millimeter
Note: Color as displayed may not be the exact shade of the original chit.