Catalog
5 000 000 Drachmai
| Issuer | Bank of Greece |
|---|---|
| Year | 1944 |
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| Reference(s) | P#128 |
| Obverse description | Brown intaglio vignette at left reproducing the head of Arethusa from the dekadrachm of Syracuse, rendered with fine engraved detail against a guilloche underprint in pale salmon and grey. To the right, the denomination numeral 5.000.000 is printed in large letterpress figures within a ruled panel, above the spelled-out value ΠΕΝΤΕ ΕΚΑΤΟΜΜΥΡΙΑ. The issue designation Α΄ appears in the upper left corner, with three manuscript signatures below — the Governor at centre-left and two Directors at lower right — alongside the payability clause dated 20 July 1944 in Athens. |
|---|---|
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| Reverse description | Printed entirely in dark grey-brown on plain paper, the reverse is composed of elaborate guilloche lacework forming a continuous geometric border. A large central cartouche encloses the numeral 5.000.000 in bold outlined figures, flanked symmetrically at left and right by two ornate rosette medallions each bearing the figure 5 above the inscription ΕΚΑΤΟΜΜΥΡΙΑ. The bank name ΤΡΑΠΕΖΑ ΤΗΣ ΕΛΛΑΔΟΣ arches across the top, with ΕΚΔΟΣΙΣ ΠΡΩΤΗ (First Issue) along the lower margin. |
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| Comments |
By mid-1944, Axis occupation had pushed Greek inflation so far beyond control that the Bank of Greece was printing notes in denominations that would have been unimaginable four years earlier. The five million drachmai note arrived as part of a frantic escalation — the same year also saw issues of 25 million and eventually 100 billion drachmai — as prices doubled in days rather than months.
Printed domestically under occupation conditions, the technical quality reflects the constraints of the moment. The liberation in October 1944 brought an immediate currency reform: the new drachma replaced the old at a rate of 50 billion to one.