Catalog
See full images - free registration
Continue with Google - no registration!
or register with email
Why register? Just to keep bots out of our catalog. Your email stays private - we will never share it or send you anything uninvited. We guarantee you that!
100 Won
| Issuer | Bank of Korea |
|---|---|
| Year | 1950-1953 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | Log in to see details |
| Currency | Log in to see details |
| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Size | Log in to see details |
| Shape | Log in to see details |
| Printer | Log in to see details |
| Designer(s) | Log in to see details |
| Engraver(s) | Log in to see details |
| In circulation to | 15 February 1953 |
| Reference(s) | Log in to see details |
| Obverse description | The obverse is printed in brown on a light guilloche underprint and centres on an intaglio vignette of Gwanghwamun, the imposing main gate of Gyeongbokgung Palace in Seoul, set against a mountainous background and flanked by figures in traditional dress. The bank title 韓國銀行券 runs across the upper portion within a decorative cartouche, while the large Sino-Korean characters 百圓 and the issuer seal 韓國銀行 in red appear to the right of the vignette. Numeral value counters reading 100 and the Hanja 百 occupy all four corners within ornate foliate borders. |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Reverse description | The reverse is executed entirely in brown letterpress and intaglio, with a large central guilloche medallion enclosing the bold numeral 100 in white relief, flanked by symmetrical acanthus scroll ornaments. The legend THE BANK OF KOREA is inscribed in a solid panel across the top, and the denomination panel 100WON runs along the lower edge within a decorative surround. The four corners are occupied by elaborate volute and floral motifs, completing the ornamental composition. |
| Reverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Signature(s) | Log in to see details |
| Protection type | Log in to see details |
| Protection description | Log in to see details |
| Variants | Log in to see details |
| Comments |
South Korea's earliest banknotes were printed in Japan under a wartime emergency arrangement — the Korean War broke out just five years after Japan's defeat and occupation, and the nascent Bank of Korea had no domestic printing infrastructure capable of producing currency at scale. The National Printing Bureau in Tokyo, which had printed Imperial Japanese currency for decades, was contracted to produce these early won notes at a moment when Seoul itself would change hands four times.
The Japanese printing origin was not advertised. Given the political climate of 1950, it was a practical necessity that few in either country wished to dwell on.