Catalog
50 Livres
| Issuer | Banque de Syrie et du Grand-Liban |
|---|---|
| Year | 1938 |
| Type | Pattern or trial banknote |
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|---|---|
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| Reverse description | The reverse is rendered in olive-green and terracotta tones, dominated by a large central vignette of the Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem viewed through a Moorish arched gateway, with ornamental gardens and a fountain in the foreground. The bank name BANQUE DE SYRIE ET DU GRAND-LIBAN runs across the upper margin in serif capitals, with the denomination CINQUANTE LIVRES inscribed in red below it at centre. Corner numerals 50 appear in each of the four corners within an intricate geometric guilloche border of Islamic-style interlace. |
| Reverse lettering | BANQUE DE SYRIE ET DU GRAND-LIBAN CINQUANTE LIVRES 50 |
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| Comments |
The Banque de Syrie et du Grand-Liban was a French concessionary institution operating under the French Mandate, and by 1938 its days as sole issuing authority were already numbered — the mandate itself was unraveling politically, and Syria's 1936 treaty with France (never ratified) had promised an independent state. Notes of this series were printed by the Banque de France, which brought its full intaglio craft to the job.
The "Grand-Liban" in the bank's name reflects the enlarged Lebanon that France carved out in 1920, incorporating Beirut and the coastal cities into what became the Lebanese Republic. Pick #39I denotes a specific signature combination within the series — earlier and later signature variants carry meaningfully different scarcity profiles.