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500 Francs
| Issuer | Banque Nationale de Belgique |
|---|---|
| Year | 1851 |
| Type | Standard circulation banknote |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | LOI DU 5 MAI 1850 500 ROYALME DE BELGIQUE 500 BANQUE NATIONALE A Vue il sera payé au Porteur CINQ CENTS FRANCS Bruxelles, le 2 Janvier 1851 (Translation: Law of May 5, 1850 Kingdom of Belgium National Bank At sight it will be paid to the bearer Five Hundred Francs Brussels, January 2nd., 1851) |
| Reverse description | Mirror image of the obverse composition printed in dark blue, with the allegorical figures reversed left-to-right. Two rounded control stamps appear at the lateral sides, one in red and one in black. |
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| Comments |
The Banque Nationale de Belgique was established by royal decree in 1850, making this 500 Francs note among the earliest issues from a brand-new central bank — the ink was barely dry on its founding charter. At 500 Francs, this was a high-denomination instrument aimed squarely at commercial and interbank transactions, not retail circulation, which in part accounts for the extreme scarcity of surviving examples in any condition.
Léopold Wiener was primarily a medallist and engraver at the Brussels Mint, and his involvement here reflects the tight institutional overlap between the Mint and the new Bank in those early years.