Estonia's first domestic currency issue came almost immediately after the November 1918 declaration of independence, with the Ministry of Finance acting as issuer in the absence of a functioning central bank. The 3 Marka was part of that inaugural series, produced under wartime conditions while Estonian forces were actively fighting both German and Soviet Russian troops on their own territory — the War of Independence would not conclude until February 1920.
Ussisoo and Grinjev designed the series locally, which was unusual for a newly independent state that might otherwise have contracted a foreign security printer. The printing was handled domestically in Tallinn, a practical necessity given the blockades and chaos of 1919.
Estonia's first domestic currency issue came almost immediately after the November 1918 declaration of independence, with the Ministry of Finance acting as issuer in the absence of a functioning central bank. The 3 Marka was part of that inaugural series, produced under wartime conditions while Estonian forces were actively fighting both German and Soviet Russian troops on their own territory — the War of Independence would not conclude until February 1920.
Ussisoo and Grinjev designed the series locally, which was unusual for a newly independent state that might otherwise have contracted a foreign security printer. The printing was handled domestically in Tallinn, a practical necessity given the blockades and chaos of 1919.