Catalog
25 Drachmai
| Issuer | National Bank of Greece |
|---|---|
| Year | 1923 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | Log in to see details |
| Currency | Log in to see details |
| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Size | Log in to see details |
| Shape | Log in to see details |
| Printer | Bradbury Wilkinson and Company, United Kingdom (1856-1990) |
| Designer(s) | Log in to see details |
| Engraver(s) | Log in to see details |
| In circulation to | Log in to see details |
| Reference(s) | Log in to see details |
| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Reverse description | Central intaglio vignette of the Temple of Athena Nike on the Athenian Acropolis, rendered in fine detail against an open sky, flanked symmetrically on either side by large guilloche rosettes bearing the numeral '25'. The bank title 'ΕΘΝΙΚΗ ΤΡΑΠΕΖΑ ΤΗΣ ΕΛΛΑΔΟΣ' is inscribed across the upper border, with the written denomination 'ΕΚΔΟΣΙΣ ΕΝΔΕΚΑΤΗ' along the lower margin. The overall design is executed in blue-grey intaglio with an intricate geometric border frame. |
| Reverse lettering | ΕΘΝΙΚΗ ΤΡΑΠΕΖΑ ΤΗΣ ΕΛΛΑΔΟΣ ΕΚΔΟΣΙΣ ΕΝΔΕΚΑΤΗ PRINTED BY WILKINSON & Co LTD ANGLETERRE |
| Signature(s) | Log in to see details |
| Protection type | Log in to see details |
| Protection description | Log in to see details |
| Variants | Log in to see details |
| Comments |
This note was issued during one of the most turbulent periods in modern Greek monetary history. The 1920s saw Greece absorbing over a million refugees following the catastrophic population exchange with Turkey after the Asia Minor disaster of 1922 — a humanitarian and fiscal emergency that placed the National Bank under severe strain. New currency in small denominations was urgently needed to keep domestic trade moving.
Bradbury Wilkinson had a long relationship with Greek authorities and produced several denominations in this period. The P#71 series is notably scarce in circulated grades, likely because low-denomination notes of this type were used hard and discarded.