How not to strike a false note in Peru

I´ve noticed that it´s almost de rigeur for merchants in Peru to scrutinize any bill you give them to check if it´s counterfeit or not (so far I haven´t had the bad luck to be stuck with a nota falsa). But I didn´t know what clues they were looking for. Today I went to the currency museum and was shown a video on how to spot fake bills. The very existence of this video (which I watched with several dozen kids on a school tour) is somewhat striking. For the Canadian or other western government to make such an admission about the debasement of its currency would be a severe loss of face, or worse. But I guess here they have to deal with the situation as it is, hence the public education.

So here´s a primer on spotting counterfeits:

• The number 10 on the right side of the bill should change in colour from purpole to green as you tilt it away from you.
• Hard to see in this picture, but if you hold the bill up to the light you should see an embedded vertical strip (the locations vary slightly, but it will intersect the word RESERVA)
• The hologram to the right of DIEZ NUEVO SOLES should display the number 10 when tilted the right way
• The watermark underneath BANCO CENTRAL should look like the main picture )a bit subtle)
• If you´re experienced enough, you can tell by the quality of the paper (or so they claim)

Surprisingly, there are also counterfeit coins in circulation.