Catalog
1/4 Livre Turque
| Issuer | Dette Publique Ottomane |
|---|---|
| Year | 1915 |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Size | 135 x 78 mm |
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| Obverse description | The obverse is printed in green on light paper, dominated by an intricate arabesque guilloche border framing the entire note. The Ottoman tughra appears at the top centre above multi-line Arabic script text, with the denomination fraction 1/4 rendered in both Western and Arabic numerals at the upper corners. A central panel carries the main Ottoman Turkish inscription in elaborate calligraphy, flanked by symmetrical foliate ornamental underprint designs. The series letter and serial number appear in the lower left and right areas respectively. |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Reverse description | The reverse is largely plain, printed on uncoated white paper with only faint ghost impressions of the obverse design visible through the thin stock. A faint watermark pattern is discernible across the surface, with very light text impressions visible in the centre field. |
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| Comments |
The Dette Publique Ottomane — the Ottoman Public Debt Administration — was a remarkable institution: a European-controlled financial body operating inside a sovereign empire, established after the Ottoman default of 1875 to manage repayment to foreign bondholders. That this organization issued emergency paper currency in 1915 reflects how severely World War I had disrupted normal monetary channels. Coin shortages were acute by that point, and fractional notes like this quarter-livre filled a gap the Treasury itself struggled to address.
The watermark is the primary security feature, modest by wartime necessity.