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50 Livres
| Issuer | Banque de Syrie et du Grand-Liban |
|---|---|
| Year | 1938 |
| Type | Pattern or trial banknote |
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|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | بنك سوريا ولبنان الكبير سوريا خمسون ليرة SYRIE 1939 لبنان الكبير |
| Reverse description | The reverse is printed in tones of green and red, with an intricate Celtic-style interlaced border running the full perimeter. The central vignette presents a detailed intaglio view of a domed mosque with minarets set among gardens and cypress trees. The issuer's name appears in full across the top in Latin script, with the denomination in French centred below in red letterpress. |
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| Comments |
The Banque de Syrie et du Grand-Liban was a French concessionary institution — its note-issuing authority derived from a mandate granted by the Banque de France, not from any Syrian or Lebanese sovereign body. By 1938, the French Mandate administration was already under pressure, and currency policy reflected metropolitan anxieties as much as local economic needs. This 50 Livres was among the higher denominations in a system where most everyday transactions involved far smaller notes, which limited its actual hand-to-hand circulation.
Waterlow & Sons had printed for the bank across multiple series; the relationship was long-standing and the plates well-worn by the late 1930s.