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500 Latu
| Issuer | Latvijas Banka (Bank of Latvia) |
|---|---|
| Year | 1929 |
| Type | Standard circulation banknote |
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| Obverse description | Blue and brown intaglio print on multicolour guilloche underprint. A portrait of a woman in traditional Latvian national costume is positioned at right, with the denomination and bank title inscriptions framed by ornate decorative borders. The date 1929 and gold-backing clause appear in the central text panel. |
|---|---|
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| Reverse description | Purple and green intaglio print on multicolour underprint. A large central vignette within an oval guilloche frame presents a pastoral agricultural scene with cattle grazing and grain sheaves in the foreground, a farmstead visible in the background. Caduceus symbols flank the central oval, with large denomination numerals "500" set within circular guilloche cartouches at left and right, and smaller agricultural vignettes occupying the lower lateral panels. |
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| Comments |
The 500 Latu was the highest denomination issued by Latvijas Banka during the interwar period, and at the time of issue Latvia's lats was one of the most stable currencies in Europe — pegged to gold and backed by reserves that the government defended with considerable discipline throughout the late 1920s. Bradbury Wilkinson, the New Malden firm responsible for printing, had by 1929 become a standard choice for newly independent states that needed internationally credible security printing and lacked domestic infrastructure to produce it.
Very few of these notes circulated in any meaningful volume. A 500 Latu note represented a substantial sum for ordinary Latvians of the period, placing it almost entirely in institutional and commercial use.