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500 000 Drachmai Agricultural Treasury Bond, second issue
| Issuer | Bank of Greece |
|---|---|
| Year | 1943 |
| Type | Standard circulation banknote |
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| Obverse description | Brown and pink letterpress note with a rectangular guilloche border frame. The issuer's name ΤΡΑΠΕΖΑ ΤΗΣ ΕΛΛΑΔΟΣ appears in a cartouche at the top, below which the denomination 500.000 ΔΡΑΧΜΑΙ is printed in large bold numerals at centre, flanked by the series designation ΣΕΙΡΑ Β! repeated on either side. The lower portion carries multi-line Greek text detailing the bond's legal terms, the issue date EN ΑΘΗΝΑΙΣ ΤΗ 5° ΜΑΡΤΙΟΥ 1943, and two manuscript signatures of the Governor and Directors of the Bank of Greece. |
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| Obverse lettering | ΤΡΑΠΕΖΑ ΤΗΣ ΕΛΛΑΔΟΣ ΤΑΜΕΙΑΚΟΝ ΓΡΑΜΜΑΤΙΟΝ ΕΙΣ ΤΟΝ ΚΟΜΙΣΤΗΝ ΔΙΑ ΤΗΝ ΣΥΓΚΕΝΤΡΩΣΙΝ ΤΩΝ ΑΓΡΟΤΙΚΩΝ ΠΡΟΪΟΝΤΩΝ ΣΕΙΡΑ Β! 500.000 ΔΡΑΧΜΑΙ Η ΤΡΑΠΕΖΑ ΤΗΣ ΕΛΛΑΔΟΣ ΥΠΟΧΡΕΟΥΤΑΙ Ν' ΑΝΤΑΛΛΑΞΗ ΕΝΑΝΤΙ ΤΡΑΠΕΖΟΓΡΑΜΜΑΤΙΟΝ ΤΟ ΠΑΡΟΝ ΤΑΜΕΙΑΚΟΝ ΓΡΑΜ. ΜΑΤΙΟΝ ΕΙΣ ΤΟΝ ΚΟΜΙΣΤΗΝ ΤΗ 30° ΙΟΥΝΙΟΥ 1943 Ο ΔΙΟΙΚΗΤΗΣ ΟΙ ΔΙΕΥΘΥΝΤΑΙ ΕΝ ΑΘΗΝΑΙΣ ΤΗ 5° ΜΑΡΤΙΟΥ 1943 ΤΟ ΤΑΜΕΙΑΚΟΝ ΤΟΥΤΟ ΓΡΑΜΜΑΤΙΟΝ ΟΦΕΙΛΕΙ ΝΑ ΓΙΝΕΤΑΙ ΔΕΚΤΟΝ ΠΑΡΑ ΤΩΝ ΠΑΡΑΓΩΓΩΝ ΔΙΑ ΤΗΝ ΠΛΗΡΩΜΗΝ ΤΟΥ 75% ΤΗΣ ΑΞΙΑΣ ΤΩΝ ΓΕΩΡΓΙΚΩΝ ΠΡΟΪΟΝΤΩΝ ΚΑΤΑ ΤΗΝ ΠΑΡΑΔΟΣΙΝ ΤΟΥΤΩΝ ΕΙΣ ΤΗΝ ΣΥΓΚΕΝΤΡΩΣΙΝ (ΑΡΘΡΟΝ 2, Ν.Δ.1984/1942) Η ΠΑΡΑΠΟΙΗΣΙΣ, Η ΠΛΑΣΤΟΓΡΑΦΗΣΙΣ ΚΑΙ Η ΕΝ ΓΝΩΣΕΙ ΤΗΣ ΠΛΑΣΤΟΤΗΤΟΣ ΚΥΚΛΟΦΟΡΙΑ ΤΙΜΩΡΟΥΝΤΑΙ ΚΑΤΑ ΤΟ ΑΡΘΡΟΝ 4, ΤΟΥ Ν.Δ. 1984/1942 ΝΟΜΟΘΕΤΙΚΟΝ ΔΙΑΤΑΓΜΑ ΑΡ.2184/8-2-1943 ΥΠΟΥΡΓΙΚΗ ΑΠΟΦΑΣΙΣ ΤΗΣ 3-3-1943 |
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| Comments |
Greece's wartime occupation government financed itself partly through forced borrowing, and these Agricultural Treasury Bonds were one mechanism for doing so — nominally instruments of rural credit, practically a way of extracting value from a collapsing economy. By 1943, hyperinflation was already destroying the drachma at a pace that made printed denominations obsolete almost as soon as they were issued. The 500,000 drachmai figure, staggering by prewar standards, was a routine transactional amount within months of issue.
The "second issue" designation matters for attribution. Earlier Agricultural Treasury Bond issues of 1943 differ in serial numbering and overprint characteristics, and misidentification between the two is common in less careful cataloging.