Typologically one of the rarest Polish banknotes.
A banknote with a very good presence resulting from a masterly conservation.
An album piece for sightseers. Rare in any state of preservation.
In 1919, a law was passed to name the future Polish currency and to establish the Bank of Poland. It was thought that it would be possible to carry out the exchange of Polish marks for zlotys in a short time. The only reason, as it seemed at the time, for not implementing the resolution was the lack of means of payment bearing value in the new currency. The difficult situation of the reborn country influenced the fact that it was decided to introduce only banknotes into circulation. Due to the lack of a modern printing plant in the country, the order was turned to abroad. Because of the rush, the question of the appearance of the graphic design of Polish paper money was left in the hands of graphic designers employed by the printing houses that were to make the banknotes. The order was accompanied by photographs of popular images of Tadeusz Kosciuszko and Jozef Poniatowski.
Initially, ten denominations were planned for circulation. The lower denominations from 1 to 50 zlotys were printed in 1919 by the Banque de France. In contrast, banknotes with denominations from 100 to 5,000 were printed in 1920 by the London printing house Waterlow & Sons Limited.
In 1924, Poland underwent a currency reform that resulted in the conversion of Polish marks into zlotys. On the day the Bank of Poland opened, six of the ten denominations were allowed into circulation. Banknotes in the denominations of 1 and 2 zlotys were put into circulation as pass tickets of the Ministry of the Treasury, but were not provided with the appropriate overprints informing of this fact. The two highest denominations - 1,000 and 5,000 zlotys - also did not enter circulation. These banknotes were not put into circulation because their face value was too high.
The graphic design of the banknotes ordered in 1919 is kept in a neo-Baroque style. Only the 10 zloty is characterized by Art Nouveau geometrization of space. Starting with the 50 zloty denomination, the graphic design of each denomination is enriched by ornamental motifs in the form of acanthus leaves, bunches of fruit, shells, palmettes and guilloches.
The main accent of the obverse of each denomination is a bust of a national hero. On the reverse of the 5, 20, 50, 100 and 500 zloty banknotes, a White Eagle in an open crown was placed at the height of a portrait of Kosciuszko or Poniatowski.
In the middle of 1924, the money market experienced shortages of the most commonly used paper money in everyday life. In view of the situation, it was decided to print banknotes with denominations of 5, 10 and 20 zlotys. This task was entrusted to the State Graphic Works in Warsaw. On the banknotes printed in Warsaw, the date of issue was changed to July 15, 1924, the wording of the legal clause and the signatures.
