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1000 Francs
| Issuer | Banque Nationale de Belgique |
|---|---|
| Year | 1914 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | 1000 Francs (1000 BEF) |
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| Obverse description | Oval vignette at left with a portrait of King Leopold I in military uniform with epaulettes and decorations. To the right, the bank title and denomination are set in bold letterpress within a lightly guilloche-patterned field, with the date 'Bruxelles, le 27 Août 1914' printed below. The note is framed by an intricate guilloche border with corner ornaments, and bears two signature lines flanking a central serial number. |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | Banque Nationale de Belgique (Comptes courants) Francs 1000 Francs Payable à vue Bruxelles La loi punit le contrefacteur des travaux forcés. |
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| Comments |
Pick 85 sits at a peculiar intersection of Belgian monetary history: issued in 1914 just as the German invasion disrupted normal banking operations, these notes were authorized under conditions the Banque Nationale had never anticipated. The occupation created an immediate dual-authority problem — Belgian institutions nominally continued to function, but German military administrators exerted increasing pressure over currency supply and reserves.
High-denomination notes from this period are genuinely rare survivors. The 1914–1918 occupation saw significant quantities of large-value paper redeemed, sequestered, or destroyed, and post-war stabilization efforts further reduced what circulated freely.