Catalog
500 Markkaa
| Issuer | Suomen Pankki (Bank of Finland) |
|---|---|
| Year | 1898 |
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| Currency | Markka (1860-1963) |
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| Reverse description | The central motif is the Finnish Lion arms enclosed within a circular band of text in Swedish and Finnish, the whole surrounded by decorative spruce twigs. Denomination numerals appear within the design, and the field carries substantial parallel text blocks in Russian, Swedish, and Finnish setting out the legal basis for the currency. |
| Reverse lettering | ФИНЛЯНДСКІЙ БАНКЪ ПЯТЬСОТ 500 МАРОКЪ ЗОЛОТОМЪ FINLANDS BANK 500 MARK SUOMEN PANKKI 500 MARKKAA LAKI SUOMEN SUURIRUHTINAANMAAN RAHASTA ANNETTU HELSINGISSÄ 9P:NÄ ELOKUUTA 1877. 1§ SUOMENMAAN RAHALAITOKSEN KANTANA ON KULTA AINOANA ARVONMITTANA. (Translation: [Russian] Bank of Finland 500 Marks in gold [Swedish and Finnish] Bank of Finland 500 Marks [Swedish and Finnish, small lettering] The law on the Grand Duchy of Finland's money enacted in Helsinki on 9th of August 1877. 1§ The Finnish department of finance determines gold as the only standard of value) |
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| Comments |
Finland was still an autonomous Grand Duchy under Russian imperial rule when this note was issued, and Suomen Pankki operated under considerable political pressure from St. Petersburg throughout the 1890s. The Bank of Finland had deliberately cultivated a gold-backed markka independent of the Russian ruble since the 1877 monetary reform — a financial separation that the tsarist government tolerated uneasily.
Pick 8 belongs to a long-running series that remained in formal issue for an extended period, making precise dating of individual specimens from the printed year alone unreliable. Signatures and serial ranges matter more than the face date when placing a note within the series.