Catalog
3 Talonas 'Coupon'
| Issuer | Lithuania |
|---|---|
| Year | 1991 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | 3 Talonas |
| 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 | Log in to see details |
| 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 | Dark-green and gray intaglio printing over a blue-green, ochre, and brown multicolour underprint, consistent with the obverse palette of this transitional talonas series. The central vignette presents two gray herons rendered in a naturalistic illustrative style, their forms set against the toned underprint. The composition is unlettered, relying entirely on the ornithological motif as its principal design element. |
| Reverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Signature(s) | Log in to see details |
| Protection type | Log in to see details |
| Protection description | Large squarish diamond with symbol of the republic repeated throughout the paper. |
| Variants | Log in to see details |
| Comments |
Lithuania's talonas ("coupon") system was introduced in May 1991 as a rationing mechanism alongside the Soviet ruble, not as a replacement for it. Residents needed both — rubles to pay and talonai to authorize the purchase of rationed goods. The arrangement was always intended as transitional, and by October 1992 the talonas had become the sole circulating currency, a role it held until the litas was restored in 1993.
Spindulys, a Kaunas printing house founded in 1928, produced the series entirely domestically — no small feat given the supply constraints of the period. The watermark is present but rudimentary, reflecting what Lithuanian industry could deliver quickly under pressure.