Catalog
5 Dinara
| Issuer | Serbia |
|---|---|
| Year | 1876 |
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| Designer(s) | Louis Paul Pierre Courselles-Dumont |
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| Obverse description | The face is divided into three principal vignette zones: at left, a seated peasant woman in traditional Serbian costume; at top centre, a portrait of Prince Milan Obrenović IV flanked by cherub figures; and at right, a standing soldier in full uniform. Extensive Cyrillic letterpress text occupies the central field, stating the denomination, the legal authority of issue, and a penal notice referencing Articles 145 and 146 of the criminal code, with the printer's imprint 'L. DUMONT PARIS' at lower centre. |
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| Reverse lettering | 5 L. DUMONT PARIS 5 |
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| Comments |
Serbia's first paper currency series, of which this is the 5 Dinara denomination, was authorized under the Law on Paper Money of January 1876 — a direct consequence of the fiscal strain preceding the Serbian-Ottoman wars of that year. The government needed circulating medium quickly, and Paris was the practical choice: Serbian minting and printing infrastructure was not yet capable of producing secure banknotes domestically.
Public reception was cold. A population that had operated on Ottoman and Austrian coinage for generations treated paper money with open skepticism, and significant quantities were hoarded or refused outright rather than passed in trade. Circulated survivors are correspondingly scarce.