Catalog
10 Pounds
| Issuer | Central Bank of Cyprus |
|---|---|
| Year | 1977-1985 |
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| Currency | Pound (decimalized, 1955-1982) |
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| Obverse description | Intaglio vignette of an ancient limestone bust, facing right, at left center, representing a classical Cypriot sculpture. The Arms of Cyprus appear within a circular guilloche medallion at right, dated 1960. Bilingual inscriptions in Greek and Turkish read ΚΕΝΤΡΙΚΗ ΤΡΑΠΕΖΑ ΤΗΣ ΚΥΠΡΟΥ and KIBRIS MERKEZ BANKASI across the top, with the denomination ΔΕΚΑ ΛΙΡΑΙ / ON LIRA in the center field. |
|---|---|
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| Reverse description | A finely engraved vignette occupies the central field, showing two birds perched on flowering branches — a Cyprus Warbler at left and a Kingfisher at right — rendered in detailed intaglio work against a background of reeds and wildflowers. The inscription CENTRAL BANK OF CYPRUS appears in the upper right, with TEN POUNDS at lower left. A decorative geometric border frames the entire composition. |
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| Comments |
Bradbury Wilkinson printed this series from their New Malden works through a period of acute instability on the island — the Turkish military intervention of 1974 had displaced roughly a third of the Cypriot population and left the economy severed from the northern territories it had previously relied upon. That the Central Bank was issuing high-denomination notes in good order by 1977 reflected a deliberate effort to project institutional stability.
The transition from Aspros to Afxentiou as signing governor, visible across the four date variants, tracks a broader consolidation of monetary policy during the Republic's economic recovery years. Afxentiou served as governor through the mid-1980s.