Catalog
50 Piastres
| Issuer | Banque de Syrie et du Liban |
|---|---|
| Year | 1948-1950 |
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| Value | 50 Piastres (0.50 LBP) |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Obverse description | Central vignette presents an intaglio view of the Temple of Bacchus colonnade at Baalbek, set against a sky rendered in fine line engraving. The upper portion carries the Arabic inscription of the Lebanese Republic title within a guilloche border, flanked by the denomination numeral 50 in Arabic script at each corner. Two manuscript signatures appear at lower centre, with the date of issue inscribed in Arabic below the central vignette. |
|---|---|
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| Reverse lettering | REPUBLIQUE LIBANAISE 50 PIASTRES CINQUANTE PIASTRES |
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| Comments |
The Banque de Syrie et du Liban occupied an unusual position in postwar monetary history — a French-chartered institution continuing to issue currency for two newly independent Arab states that had every political reason to replace it. Syria and Lebanon had formally achieved independence in 1943 and 1946 respectively, yet this note circulates under a bank whose authority both governments were actively working to terminate. The Syrian pound broke free first, with the Banque Centrale de Syrie absorbing functions in 1956.
Bradbury Wilkinson's New Malden facility was the dominant supplier of currency to former French mandate territories during this transition period, a practical arrangement given the disruption to French printing capacity in the immediate postwar years.