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1 Zloty
| Issuer | Departament Skarbowy (Treasury Department of the Kościuszko Insurrection) |
|---|---|
| Year | 1794 |
| Type | Standard circulation banknote |
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| Obverse description | Typeset note with a plain unprinted ground, enclosed by a simple ruled border with corner ornaments and oval floral rosettes at the sides. The upper register bears a rounded cartouche inscribed with the issue decree date, flanked by alphanumeric control letters in the corners. The denomination inscription 'Bilet Skarbowy' is rendered in large calligraphic script at centre, with the value line 'Na Jeden Złoty Polski' below in cursive, followed by the security pledge clause 'Zabezpieczony na Dobrach Narod'. A rectangular boxed numeral '1' appears at lower centre, with the words 'Jeden Złoty' printed in roman type along the bottom. |
|---|---|
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| Reverse description | Plain unprinted paper field carrying a single handwritten authorising signature in cursive script at centre, with faint watermark impressions visible through the leaf. The reverse is otherwise unadorned, consistent with the emergency issue character of these Insurrection-era treasury notes. |
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| Comments |
Issued during the Kościuszko Uprising of 1794, this note belongs to one of the earliest experiments in Polish paper currency — and one born entirely of military necessity. The insurrection's Treasury Department introduced these small-denomination notes to pay troops and suppliers when the coin supply had effectively collapsed under the strain of war against Russia and Prussia simultaneously. The 1 Zloty was the lowest unit in the series, deliberately designed to reach ordinary transactions that larger notes could not.
The handwritten signature on each note was not a formality — it was a primary authentication control, with individually signed copies distinguishable from forgeries that the Russian-backed opposition actively circulated to destabilize confidence in the insurgent economy. The uprising was crushed by November 1794, and with it the issuing authority ceased to exist entirely.