Catalog
1 Livre
| Issuer | Banque de Syrie et du Liban |
|---|---|
| Year | 1945-1950 |
| Type | Standard circulation banknote |
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| Obverse description | The central field bears the large denomination text "UNE LIVRE LIBANAISE" in French above the serial number and Arabic text, flanked by an elaborate intaglio border vignette with stylised eagle motifs, tulip buds, and floral rosettes in blue and yellow-green tones. A circular watermark zone occupies the left portion of the note. The lower portion carries two manuscript signatures above Arabic inscriptions identifying the issuing authority, with the designer and engraver credits printed in the lower corners. |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | UNE LIVRE LIBANAISE CL. SERVEAU FEC. E. DELOCHE SC. بيروت في ١ كانون الاول سنة ١٩٤٥ مدير شعب لبنان الأمين ليرة |
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| Comments |
The Banque de Syrie et du Liban was a French concessionary institution — its note-issuing rights had been granted under the Mandate and were increasingly contested by the time this series entered circulation. Syria declared independence in 1944 and Lebanon in 1943, yet both countries continued using BSL notes well into the late 1940s while negotiations over a successor currency dragged on. The 1 Livre was the workhorse denomination through that politically awkward interregnum.
Clément Serveau designed extensively for French colonial and mandated territories; Ernest Deloche's engraving work appears across multiple Banque de France–produced issues of the same period. The BSL series is among the last output of that colonial printing relationship before Syria established the Syrian Currency Board in 1950.