Catalog
10 Drachmai
| Issuer | Kingdom of Greece (Ministry of Finance) |
|---|---|
| Year | 1940 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | 10 Drachmai |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Obverse description | At left, a circular coin-style vignette in intaglio presents a right-facing portrait of Demeter, goddess of the harvest, her hair wreathed with grain, framed by wheat stalks on a red-orange guilloche underprint; the inscription ΔΗΜΗΤΗΡ appears below the medallion. To the right, the denomination numeral '10' is set within an elaborate green guilloche cartouche, flanked by the legends ΔΡΑΧΜΑΙ and ΔΕΚΑ, with the serial number in red and issue date of 6 April 1940 printed above the Minister of Finance's signature. The upper border carries the title ΒΑΣΙΛΕΙΟΝ ΤΗΣ ΕΛΛΑΔΟΣ in a dark blue panel, and the entire note is enclosed in a finely engraved foliate frame with corner numerals. |
|---|---|
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| Reverse lettering | ΒΑΣΙΛΕΙΟΝ ΤΗΣ ΕΛΛΑΔΟΣ Η ΠΑΡΑΠΟΙΗΣΙΣ Η ΠΛΑΣΤΟΓΡΑΦΗΣΙΣ ΚΑΙ Η ΕΝ ΓΝΩΣΕΙ ΤΗΣ ΠΛΑΣΤΟΤΗΤΟΣ ΚΥΚΛΟΦΟΡΙΑ ΤΙΜΩΡΟΥΝΤΑΙ ΚΑΤΑ ΤΟΝ ΝΟΜΟΝ LEIPZIG – GIESECKE & DEVRIENT – BERLIN |
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| Comments |
Giesecke & Devrient printed this note in Germany at a moment of acute political tension — Greece received delivery of a currency order from a Leipzig and Berlin firm just months before Italy's invasion in October 1940 and the subsequent German occupation. Whether the full print run reached Athens before the war cut off normal commercial relations is unclear, but 12,175,000 pieces is a substantial quantity for a low denomination.
The Ministry of Finance issuing authority rather than the Bank of Greece reflects a fiscal arrangement specific to smaller wartime and pre-war fractional notes, keeping central bank liabilities off certain short-term emission series.