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5 Drachmai Half of 10 Drachmai
| Issuer | National Bank of Greece |
|---|---|
| Year | 1885-1910 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | 5 Drachmai |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | ΕΘΝΙΚΗ ΤΡΑΠΕΖΑ ΤΗΣ ΕΛΛΑΔΟΣ ΔΡΑΧΜΑΙ ΠΛΗΡΩΤΕΑΙ ΕΠΙ ΤΗ ΕΜΦΑΝΙΣΕΙ ΕΝ ΑΘΗΝΑΙΣ Ο ΤΑΜΙΑΣ Ο ΔΙΟΙΚΗΤΗΣ ΑΠΑΓΟΡΕΥΕΤΑΙ ΝΑ ΚΥΚΛΟΦΟΡΕΙ ΝΟΜΟΣ |
| Reverse description | The reverse, corresponding to the right half of the parent 10 Drachmai note (P-46), carries a bold intaglio central panel with the denomination numeral '10' and the word FRANCS within an ornate cartouche surrounded by intricate guilloche lacework and foliate cornerpieces. The partial legend 'NATIONALE DE GRECE' runs across the upper portion, and a partially visible vignette appears at the left edge. The printer's imprint of Bradbury Wilkinson is discernible at the lower margin. |
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| Comments |
Pick 36 is a bisected note — a 10 Drachmai banknote physically cut in half and each half issued as a 5 Drachmai denomination. The National Bank of Greece resorted to this measure to address a shortage of small-denomination currency, a practice with occasional precedent in 19th-century monetary systems but rare enough to make these pieces genuinely unusual. Each half was only valid when presented with the matching serial number edge visible, though enforcement of that requirement in daily commerce was uneven at best.
Bradbury Wilkinson produced the parent 10 Drachmai sheet in London. The bisecting was done administratively in Greece, not at the press.