Catalog
3 Talonas 'Coupon'
| Issuer | Lithuania |
|---|---|
| Year | 1991 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | 3 Talonas |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Printer | Log in to see details |
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| Engraver(s) | Log in to see details |
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| Obverse description | Dark-green and gray intaglio printing over a blue-green, ochre, and brown multicolour underprint. At centre, the denomination numeral is accompanied by a vignette of a juniper branch rendered in naturalistic style, with the Lithuanian Coat of Arms positioned at right. Certain printings carry an anti-counterfeiting clause inscription along the lower margin, distinguishing the two principal varieties of this issue. |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | LIETUVOS RESPUBLIKA TALONAS 3 1991 VERTYBINIS POPIERIUS. UŽ JO PADIRBINĖJIMĄ BAUDŽIAMA PAGAL ĮSTATYMĄ. (Translation: Republic of Lithuania Talonas 3 1991 Security. Counterfeit is punished according to the Law.) |
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| 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.