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!
500 Hwan
| Issuer | Bank of Korea |
|---|---|
| Year | 1961 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | 500 Hwan |
| 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 | Log in to see details |
| Reference(s) | Log in to see details |
| Obverse description | Intaglio portrait of King Sejong the Great in traditional court attire and hat occupies the right portion of the note, set against a fine guilloche underprint. The large Korean denomination 오백환 (Five Hundred Hwan) appears in bold characters to the left, accompanied by a red Bank of Korea seal. The Korean year 4294 is inscribed at the lower right, with the issuer title 한국은행권 running along the upper portion of the note. |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Reverse description | The central vignette on the right presents an intaglio rendering of the main building of the Bank of Korea, framed by elaborate scrollwork and guilloche borders. To the left, a large rosette medallion with an intricate geometric pattern serves as a primary decorative element. The denomination 500 HWAN appears along the lower edge in both Western numerals and Korean script, with THE BANK OF KOREA inscribed across the top. |
| 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 |
The 500 Hwan was the highest denomination issued under the Hwan monetary system, which itself had only existed since the 1953 currency reform that replaced the Won at a 100:1 ratio. This note appeared in 1961 — the same year General Park Chung-hee's military coup overthrew the Second Republic — and the Hwan's days were already numbered. By June 1962, a second reform abolished the unit entirely, converting at 10 Hwan to 1 new Won.
Printed domestically by KOMSCO rather than contracted abroad, as earlier Korean issues often were. The 1962 demonetization was abrupt enough that many 500 Hwan notes never saw meaningful circulation.