500 Roubles

This note was issued by the short-lived First Republic of Armenia, which declared independence in May 1918 and collapsed under Soviet pressure in December 1920. The Yerevan Branch of the Government Bank operated under extraordinary conditions — the republic was simultaneously fighting border wars with Georgia, Azerbaijan, and Turkey while managing near-total economic collapse and a refugee catastrophe following the Armenian Genocide.

Armenian banknotes of this period were printed locally under severe material constraints, and the 500 Rouble denomination reflects runaway inflation rather than any deliberate monetary architecture. The series is notably crude by contemporary standards — a direct consequence of the absence of established printing infrastructure in Yerevan at the time of issue.