Catalog
2 Drachmai
| Issuer | Kingdom of Greece |
|---|---|
| Year | 1918 |
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| Currency | First modern drachma (1832-1944) |
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| Obverse lettering | ΒΑΣΙΛΕΙΟΝ ΤΗΣ ΕΛΛΑΔΟΣ ΔΡΑΧΜΑΙ ΔΥΟ ΠΛΗΡΩΤΕΑΙ ΕΠΙ ΤΗ ΕΜΦΑΝΙΣΕΙ Ο Κεντρικός Ταμίας Ο Υπουργός των Οικονομικών ΠΕΡΙΚΛΗΣ ΑΣΦΑΛ. Γ. ΑΣΠΙΩΤΗ ΚΕΡΚΥΡΑ |
| Reverse description | The reverse is dominated by two large circular medallions at centre, each enclosing an ancient coin-type portrait: at left a laureate male head in profile, at right a seated female figure. Between the medallions and above, the Royal Arms of Greece — a crowned shield bearing a cross — are set within an elaborate symmetrical guilloche and foliate ornamental frame. A banner at the base carries the inscription ΒΑΣΙΛΕΙΟΝ ΤΗΣ ΕΛΛΑΔΟΣ. |
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| Comments |
Printed by G. Aspioti in Corfu rather than Athens, this note reflects the severe disruption to Greek central printing capacity during the First World War. Aspioti was primarily a commercial printer and insurance stationer — the firm's full name, Ασφαλιστική Γ. Ασπιώτη, literally signals an insurance business — yet wartime necessity pushed it into banknote production.
The 1918 small-denomination issues were partly a response to acute coin shortages, with bronze and nickel hoarded across the country as the war dragged on. Corfu itself had recently served as the refuge of the Serbian government-in-exile following the 1916 retreat, adding to the island's unusual wartime administrative weight.