50 Latu

Latvia's interwar lats was introduced in 1922 to replace the Latvian rublis, itself a transitional currency that had displaced the wartime German occupation mark. By 1924, when this note entered circulation, the lats was pegged to gold at parity with the Swiss franc — a deliberate choice to signal fiscal seriousness from a republic barely four years old. The 50 latu was a substantial denomination in that economy.

Waterlow & Sons printed the bulk of early Latvian issues, a typical arrangement for newly independent states lacking domestic intaglio infrastructure. The watermark is the sole mechanical security feature — relatively modest for a high-value note, though consistent with Waterlow's output for comparable clients of the period.