1000 Rials - Mohammad Rezā Pahlavī

Bank Melli Iran issued this series during the joint Anglo-Soviet occupation of Iran, which had begun in August 1941 following the forced abdication of Reza Shah. The new high denomination was partly a response to wartime inflationary pressure — Allied military expenditure in-country was eroding purchasing power faster than the existing note supply could manage. Harrison and Sons had been printing Iranian notes since the 1930s, and the wartime relationship continued despite the logistical complications of supplying a country under occupation.

The young Mohammad Reza had been on the throne less than three years when this note entered circulation. His authority was, at this point, substantially constrained by the Allied presence.