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5 Litai Vytautas the Great
| Issuer | Lietuvos Bankas (Bank of Lithuania) |
|---|---|
| Year | 1929 |
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| Currency | Old litas (1922-1941) |
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|---|---|
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| Reverse description | Brown intaglio print with fine guilloche border frame. A large central oval vignette presents a dynamic scene of medieval Lithuanian warriors on horseback in battle, with banners, foot soldiers, and a fortified city visible in the background. Denomination numeral '5' appears in decorative panels at left and right, with the issuer and anti-forgery legends above and below the central vignette. |
| Reverse lettering | LIETUVOS BANKO BANKNOTAS BANKNOTŲ PADIRBIMAS ĮSTATYMU BAUDŽIAMAS PENKI LITAI (Translation: Lithuanian Bank Banknote Forgery of Banknotes Punished by Law Five Litai) |
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| Comments |
The 1929 series marked a deliberate moment of national self-definition for interwar Lithuania, and the choice of Vytautas the Great as the central figure was politically loaded. Vytautas died in 1430 without being crowned king — blocked at the last moment by Polish intervention — and remained a powerful symbol of Lithuanian ambition and thwarted sovereignty in the nationalist imagination of the 1920s.
Bradbury Wilkinson produced the plate work in London to a high standard, as was consistent with their output for smaller European states seeking to signal monetary credibility through print quality. The series is generally well-regarded by collectors for the engraving.