Catalog
5 Piastres
| Issuer | Banque de Syrie et du Liban |
|---|---|
| Year | 1950 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | Log in to see details |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Shape | Rectangular |
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| Engraver(s) | Log in to see details |
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| Obverse description | The obverse is printed in brown and red on plain paper, with an ornate guilloche rosette at centre bearing the Arabic denomination and date inscription. Large numeral '5' counters appear at left and right within oval frames, and the Arabic title of the Republic is set within a decorative panel across the upper border, all enclosed by a geometric frame. |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Reverse description | The reverse is printed in brown and presents a detailed intaglio vignette of Krak des Chevaliers, the medieval Crusader fortress, occupying the central field. The denomination 'CINQ PIASTRES' is lettered in bold across a panel below the country title 'REPUBLIQUE LIBANAISE' at top, with numeral '5' counters at each corner within the ruled border. |
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| Comments |
The Banque de Syrie et du Liban was a Franco-Lebanese institution operating under French Mandate concession rights — rights that were becoming increasingly untenable by 1950, with Lebanon fully independent since 1943 and Syria since 1946. The bank retained its note-issuing privilege in Lebanon until 1964, when the Banque du Liban finally assumed central banking functions. This note exists in that awkward interregnum: a colonial-era private bank still printing currency for a sovereign republic.
Bradbury Wilkinson's engraved work for this series is technically accomplished. The 5 Piastres denomination — fractional by this point in everyday commerce — had limited practical use by 1950 given post-war inflation, which likely suppressed circulation volumes.