Catalog
1 Lek
| Issuer | Banka e Shtetit Shqiptar (State Bank of Albania) |
|---|---|
| Year | 1965 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | 1 Lek (1 ALK) |
| Currency | Log in to see details |
| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Size | Log in to see details |
| Shape | Log in to see details |
| Printer | Log in to see details |
| Designer(s) | Log in to see details |
| Engraver(s) | Log in to see details |
| In circulation to | Log in to see details |
| Reference(s) | Log in to see details |
| Obverse description | Green print on yellow underprint, with the Albanian double-headed eagle coat of arms positioned at right. Red serial number appears against the guilloche-patterned background. Inscriptions in Albanian identify the issuing institution, denomination, and the note's exclusive validity for the state gold and foreign currency shop. |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | 1 REPUBLIKA POPULLORE E SHQIPERISE E VLEFSHME VETËM PËR DYQANIN E SHITJES ME AR E VALUTE DORËZONI PARAQITËSIT MALLRA PËR VLEFTËN BUONA LEK 1 ME ÇMIMET E VEÇANTA TË SHKËMBIMIT ME VALUTË DREJTORI I PËRGJITHËSHËM DREJTORI I THESARIT BANKA E SHTETIT SHQIDTAR 1965 (Translation: People's Republic of Albania. Valid only for gold and currency shop. Give the currency value to the current currency voucher. 1 lek voucher. With special currency exchange rates. General director. Treasury director. State Bank of Albania.) |
| Reverse description | Log in to see details |
| Reverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Signature(s) | Log in to see details |
| Protection type | Log in to see details |
| Protection description | Log in to see details |
| Variants | Log in to see details |
| Comments |
The 1965 Albanian lek series was issued under strict economic isolation — by this point Hoxha's government had broken with the Soviet Union and was deepening its alignment with China, which left the Albanian monetary system almost entirely cut off from Western financial infrastructure. These notes circulated in an economy where private trade was illegal and currency itself functioned more as a rationing instrument than a medium of exchange.
The series was printed in China, a direct consequence of that political realignment — one of the few concrete material traces of the Sino-Albanian relationship visible in everyday objects.