Catalog
500 Leva
| Issuer | Bulgarian National Bank |
|---|---|
| Year | 1922 |
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| Value | 500 Leva |
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| Obverse description | The state arms of the Kingdom of Bulgaria — a crowned lion rampant within a shield — appears at upper centre within an ornate vignette border. The heading ЦАРСТВО БЪЛГАРИЯ (Kingdom of Bulgaria) is inscribed at the top in Cyrillic script, with text below designating this as a Държавен Съкровищен Бон (State Treasury Bond) at 500 leva, series А. The document body contains a detailed printed Cyrillic text obligating the Bulgarian National Bank to redeem the bond, with manuscript signatures of the Minister of Finance and the Director of Public Debt. |
|---|---|
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| Reverse lettering | ИЗДАДЕНЪ ВЪЗ ОСНОВА Стойность държавенъ съкровищенъ бонъ при 5¾% лихва за изтекло време НАКАЗАТЕЛНИЯ ЗАКОНЪ |
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| Comments |
Bulgaria's postwar finances in the early 1920s were in serious difficulty. The country had emerged from the First World War on the losing side, and the Treaty of Neuilly-sur-Seine imposed heavy reparations that strained the government's fiscal position throughout this period. The 500 Leva note of 1922 belongs to a high-denomination issue that reflects the inflationary pressures bearing down on the lev during these years — not yet the hyperinflation that would follow later in the decade, but a clear warning of what was coming.
At 240 × 140 mm, this is a notably large-format note even by the generous standards of the era's printing conventions.