German issued Greek currency, 500 million Drachmai note
Extent and Medium
overall: Height: 2.375 inches (6.033 cm) | Width: 5.500 inches (13.97 cm)
Creator(s)
- Trapeza te?s Hellados (Issuer)
Archival History
The currency was donated to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in 2003 by Joel Forman.
Acquisition
United States Holocaust Memorial Museum Collection, Gift of Joel Forman
Scope and Content
German-issued Greek National currency valued at 500 million Drachmai. The Greek currency, called Drachma, can be traced back to the 6th century BC. The currency was discontinued after the Roman conquest of Greece, and reissued after Greece gained independence from the Ottoman Empire. Many of the Greek notes featured figures and images from Greek Mythology. Featured on this note is Apollo, the god of music, poetry, and art among many other things. The reverse features an image from The Parthenon Frieze. On October 28, 1940, Italy invaded Greece, but they were repelled by the Greek forces. On April 6, 1941, Germany invaded Greece to support Italy and forced the Grecians to surrender by the end of the month. Germany, Italy, and Bulgaria collectively occupied Greece until Italy’s surrender to the Allies in September 1943. Then Germany occupied all of Greece, and forced the Greek government to pay for the occupation by printing more paper money with higher denominations. The excess Drachmai caused hyperinflation, and the price for goods and services rose dramatically. During the occupation, the price of corn was 9 million Drachmai per pound. The essentially worthless paper bills gave way to bartering of supplies such as olive oil, cigarettes, and wheat. Due to the invasion and the harsh economic policies, hundreds of thousands Grecians died from lack of food during the German occupation.
Conditions Governing Access
No restrictions on access
Conditions Governing Reproduction
No restrictions on use
Physical Characteristics and Technical Requirements
Greek currency printed on lightweight, off-white rectangular paper. The face has a large, centered, light green, rectangular printed area with a black border with white, interlaced lines throughout. On the left is a large bust of Apollo, in left profile. The bust is inside an oval frame made of interlocking circles, and flanked by an outcropping of sinuous lines. To the right, in an oval frame similar to the left side, the upper left and right sides of the border are missing, but include several lines of black Greek text and the numeric denomination. A line of black text is overprinted in the center of the upper border, and a serial number has been stamped in black in the upper right corner. The numeric denomination is in each corner of the border. The background is composed of small, geometric shapes fit tightly together. The reverse has a large, centered, green rectangle framed by a scalloped border and features a central image of two men on horseback. The rear man wears a flowing tunic, and the lead man wears a loincloth. Flanking the image are rectangles that contain two lines of text and the numerical denomination overlaid on a scrollwork design and a woven background. Above and below the image are two lines of Greek text. The left side of the paper has a light yellow stain on the reverse.
face, right side, stamped, black ink : 548090 ΣP
Subjects
- Parthenon (Athens, Greece)--Frieze.
- Greece.
- Banks and banking.
- Paper money--Greece--History.
- Greece--Economic conditions--1918-1974.
- Apollo (Greek deity)
- Greece--History--Occupation, 1941-1944.
Genre
- Money.
- Object
- Exchange Media