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12.5 Drachmai Half of 25 Drachmai
| Issuer | National Bank of Greece |
|---|---|
| Year | 1922 |
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| Value | Log in to see details |
| Currency | First modern drachma (1832-1944) |
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| Obverse description | This note is the left half of a bisected 25 Drachmai banknote of the National Bank of Greece, cut vertically for emergency circulation in 1922. The obverse presents an intaglio portrait of a distinguished gentleman in three-quarter view at the left, with a pastoral vignette in the upper right corner showing a seated female figure with cattle in a landscape. A large guilloche rosette at the lower left carries the numeral '25', and the bank title 'ΕΘΝΙΚΗ ΤΡΑΠΕΖ...' appears in bold letterpress across the centre. Manuscript signatures and handwritten place and date inscriptions occupy the lower right portion. |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Reverse description | The reverse, forming the right half of the original 25 Drachmai note, is printed in blue-green on white paper and carries two circular guilloche vignettes: a large concentric-ring design at the left bearing the legend 'BANQUE NATIONALE / 25 / FRANCS / DE / GRECE', and a prominent starburst rosette at the right with the numeral '25' at its centre. The printer's imprint 'AMERICAN BANK NOTE COMPANY, NEW YORK.' appears in small letterpress text at the bottom centre. The overall design relies on lathe-work engine-turning with no pictorial imagery. |
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| Comments |
In early 1922, facing acute fiscal pressure and a shortage of small-denomination notes, the Greek government authorized a forced loan by decree: holders of 50 and 25 Drachmai notes were required to physically surrender them, have them cut in half, and deposit the severed portion in exchange for a credit against the loan. Each half was then countersigned and put back into circulation as an independent instrument at face value — in this case, 12.5 Drachmai.
The ABNC plate predates the crisis by some years; the halving scheme gave existing stock a second, involuntary life.