25 Roubles

Armenia's brief independent republic (1918–1920) issued currency through the Yerevan branch of what had been the old Russian Government Bank structure — a pragmatic institutional inheritance rather than a newly built central bank. The 25 Rouble notes of 1919 were lithographed locally under difficult conditions, and the quality of printing reflects those constraints. Armenia was simultaneously fighting border wars with Georgia, Azerbaijan, and Ottoman forces while trying to maintain a functioning monetary system.

The rouble remained the denomination of choice precisely because the population had no reason to trust an untested Armenian unit, and because trade with neighboring territories still demanded a familiar currency anchor. Soviet forces entered Yerevan in April 1920, rendering the entire series worthless within months of issue.