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20 Lei Ministry of Finance
| Issuer | Ministerul Finanțelor (Ministry of Finance) |
|---|---|
| Year | 1950 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | Log in to see details |
| Currency | Log in to see details |
| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Designer(s) | Log in to see details |
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| In circulation to | Log in to see details |
| Reference(s) | P#84 |
| Obverse description | Central vignette is a circular portrait of a young Romanian woman in traditional folk costume and headdress, positioned to the right of centre within a fine guilloche border. The denomination '20' appears in the upper-left and lower-right corners, with 'DOUA ZECI LEI' in a cartouche at centre-left. The issuing authority 'MINISTERUL FINANTELOR' and date '15 IUNIE 1950' are inscribed across the upper portion, with the designer's name 'S. ZAINEA' noted in the lower-right margin. |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Reverse description | The Romanian People's Republic coat of arms is centrally placed within an elaborate guilloche underprint, flanked by large bold numerals '20' on either side. The arms feature a forested landscape with a rising sun, framed by wheat sheaves tied with a ribbon in the national colours. A lengthy anti-counterfeiting legal warning in Romanian text runs along the lower margin within a decorative border. |
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| Comments |
The 1950 Romanian 20 Lei was part of the monetary reform of January 28, 1950 — a hard reset imposed after the communist consolidation of power, replacing the earlier leu at punishing exchange rates that effectively wiped out private savings. Issuance through the Ministry of Finance rather than a central bank was deliberate: the National Bank of Romania had been reorganized along Soviet lines only months earlier, and responsibility for these transitional notes sat with the state treasury directly.
Șerban Zainea was one of the few Romanian designers who navigated both the interwar and postwar periods with continuous output. His involvement here places this note in a small transitional window before Soviet-influenced design norms fully standardized Romanian paper currency.