75 Rupiah ORI IV

The ORI (Oeang Repoeblik Indonesia) series was the first sovereign currency issued by the Indonesian Republic, introduced in 1946 while the Dutch were actively attempting to reassert colonial control. By 1948, when this fourth emission appeared, the Republic was operating under conditions of a Dutch naval blockade that severely restricted import of printing materials — which is why later ORI issues were produced domestically on whatever paper and inks were available, with predictably variable results.

The 75 Rupiah denomination is an unusual face value by any measure, chosen partly to complicate Dutch counterfeiting efforts, which had already targeted the more predictable round-number denominations earlier in the series.