10 Rials - Mohammad Rezā Pahlavī

This note was issued during the joint Anglo-Soviet occupation of Iran, when British and Soviet forces had deposed Reza Shah in August 1941 and installed his son Mohammad Reza. Bank Melli, nominally an Iranian institution, was operating under conditions of severe external pressure — the occupation disrupted supply chains, fueled inflation, and created genuine shortages of small-denomination notes in circulation. Harrison & Sons had held the Bank Melli contract since the early 1930s, though wartime logistics made delivery from High Wycombe considerably less routine than it had been.

P#40 is frequently found with folds and handling wear consistent with heavy urban bazaar use — the 10-rial denomination was a working note, not a saved one.