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1 Skënder
| Issuer | Katundari e Korçës (Inhabitants of Korçë/Coriza/Korytza) |
|---|---|
| Year | 1921 |
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| Value | Log in to see details |
| Currency | Log in to see details |
| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| In circulation to | Log in to see details |
| Reference(s) | P#156 |
| Obverse description | The obverse is printed in red over a light green guilloche underprint, with a vignette at left of a bust of Skanderbeg in traditional armour and crested helmet, enclosed within an oval frame bearing the inscription GJERGJ at its base. The central field carries the issuer legend KATUNDARI E KORÇËS at top, the denomination SKËNDER / NJE in bold letterpress, and a numeral 1 within a circular cartouche to the right. Two manuscript signatures and a serial number appear below the denomination line, accompanied by the Albanian-language clause Në të gjaqur paguhet at the lower centre. |
|---|---|
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| Reverse lettering | KATUNDARI E KORÇËS 4 Gusht 1921 NJE |
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| Comments |
Korçë's 1921 local scrip is one of the more unusual items in Albanian notaphily. The town had already experienced a period of French military administration (1916–1920) during which it briefly operated as an autonomous entity, and the local authority's decision to issue its own currency in 1921 reflects the broader administrative chaos of early Albanian statehood — Tirana had only just been designated capital that same year, and central monetary authority was essentially nonexistent.
The denomination itself, the Skënder, references Gjergj Kastrioti Skënderbeu, the 15th-century Albanian national hero. That a municipal body named after the town's inhabitants — "Katundari e Korçës" — was naming currency units after a national symbol suggests these notes were as much a political statement as a practical transaction medium.
Pick lists only a handful of Albanian emergency issues from this period; P#156 is among the rarest.