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500 Drachmai Corfu
| Issuer | Bank of Greece |
|---|---|
| Year | 1944 |
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| Currency | First modern drachma (1832-1944) |
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| Obverse description | Portrait of a classical Greek youth in intaglio style at left, rendered after an antique sculptural model. To the right, bilingual text in Italian and Greek declares legal tender status for the Ionian Islands, with the denomination given as DRACME 1000 / ΔΡΑΧΜΑΙ and a signature line for IL TESORIERE. The border is composed of a continuous Greek key guilloche pattern. |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Reverse description | The reverse carries a bold black overprint on what appears to be an underlying banknote design, bearing the heading ΤΡΑΠΕΖΑ ΤΗΣ ΕΛΛΑΔΟΣ / ΥΠΟΚΑΤΑΣΤΗΜΑ ΚΕΡΚΥΡΑΣ (Bank of Greece, Corfu Branch). The denomination ΔΡΑΧΜΑΙ 500 ΠΕΝΤΑΚΟΣΙΑΙ is overprinted in large numerals, with an authorizing text referencing the decree of 15 December 1944 granting local circulation in Corfu. A coupon at right carries serial numbers and a circular vignette of a seated figure. |
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| Comments |
The Corfu overprint series of 1944 was issued specifically for Allied-liberated Greek territory rather than the German-occupied mainland — a deliberate administrative separation intended to prevent overprinted notes from being exploited by Axis forces or black market operators moving between zones. These notes were regular Bank of Greece issues stamped for restricted regional circulation.
Greece's wartime hyperinflation was among the worst in recorded monetary history; by late 1944, the drachma had effectively collapsed, making denominations like this one nearly worthless in daily transactions almost the moment they were issued.