Sabanas (Sheet)

In December 1913, Villa became the provisional governor of Chihuahua and began issuing state treasury notes. Due to their large size and high denominations, people called these notes 'sábanas'—bedsheets. These large sheets of paper circulated within the state in place of silver coins. They were backed not by gold or silver, but by the authority of Villa's army itself. This paper money was viable only as long as the army held the upper hand—revolutionary currency was a direct reflection of the state of the war. The piece shown is a 10 centavos note dated December 10, 1913, printed with the name of the provisional governor, Francisco Villa.