Catalog
10 Drachmai
| Issuer | National Bank of Greece |
|---|---|
| Year | 1912-1914 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | Log in to see details |
| 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 | American Bank Note Company, New York, United States |
| 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 | Portrait vignette of Georgios Stavros, founder of the National Bank of Greece, positioned at left; the large denomination numeral occupies the centre within an elaborate guilloche underprint; the national coat of arms appears at right. The entire face is executed in intaglio, with the fine lathe-work surrounds characteristic of American Bank Note Company engraving. |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Reverse description | Central oval intaglio vignette of the Hermes of Praxiteles rendered as a sculptural bust, set against an elaborate guilloche ground in green and violet tones. The denomination numeral '10' appears within ornate lathe-work panels at left and right, flanked by the word 'FRANCS'; the legend 'BANQUE NATIONALE DE GRECE' arches across the upper and lower borders, with the Greek inscription 'ΕΚΔΟΣΙΣ ΕΝΝΑΤΗ' (Ninth Issue) below the central vignette and the printer's imprint at the base. |
| 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 |
Greece was actively at war when this note entered circulation — the Balkan Wars of 1912–13 reshaped the country's northern borders dramatically, and the National Bank of Greece was simultaneously managing wartime finance and absorbing the monetary infrastructure of newly acquired territories. The American Bank Note Company had been printing Greek currency since the 1880s, and this series continued that relationship at a moment of acute fiscal pressure.
The ABNC contract meant design quality was high, but wartime demand and extended issue dates across 1912–14 produced considerable variation in serial numbering and overprint practices across the run.