Catalog
50 Piastres
| Issuer | Ministry of Finance, Lebanon |
|---|---|
| Year | 1942 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | Log in to see details |
| Currency | Lebanese pound (1939-date) |
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| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Reverse description | The reverse is dominated by a large ornate guilloche rosette at centre, printed in dark green over a pink-violet lathe-work underprint, with the numeral '50' set within a horizontal cartouche bearing the inscription 'PIASTRES LIBANAISES'. Elaborate architectural arch-and-column frames appear at left and right, each enclosing circular rosette ornaments, creating a highly decorative geometric composition typical of Bradbury Wilkinson engraving. The printer's imprint appears in a fine-text line at the base of the central panel. |
| Reverse lettering | 50 PIASTRES LIBANAISES (Translation: 50 Lebanese Piastres) |
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| Comments |
Lebanon's wartime finances in 1942 were tangled — the country was under Free French authority following the 1941 Levant campaign, and the existing Syrian-Lebanese currency arrangements through the Banque de Syrie et du Liban were complicated by Vichy-era disruptions. This Ministry of Finance issue bypassed the concession bank entirely, a notable institutional choice. Bradbury Wilkinson's involvement was unsurprising; they held longstanding relationships with British-administered and British-adjacent territories throughout the war.
Pick 37 is among the scarcer wartime Lebanese issues, with low surviving populations suggesting limited print runs rather than heavy circulation losses.