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500 Lira İnönü
| Issuer | Türkiye Cumhuriyet Merkez Bankası |
|---|---|
| Year | 1940 |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Shape | Rectangular |
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| Obverse description | At right, an intaglio portrait of President İsmet İnönü rendered in three-quarter view is set against a fine guilloche underprint that fills the note's central and left fields. The large numeral '500' and the Turkish denomination legend appear in the centre, flanked by elaborate arabesque scrollwork borders, with the issuing authority inscription running along the upper margin. Two signature lines and serial number panels occupy the lower central field. |
|---|---|
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| Reverse lettering | TÜRKİYE CÜMHURİYET MERKEZ BANKASI 500 TÜRK LİRASI (Translation: Central Bank of the Republic of Turkey, 500 Turkish Lira) |
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| Comments |
This note belongs to the first series issued after the death of Atatürk in November 1938, when İsmet İnönü assumed the presidency and the central bank moved quickly to introduce revised currency reflecting the new political leadership. Thomas De La Rue had held the Turkish printing contract since the early Republican period, and the relationship continued uninterrupted through the transition — a deliberate signal of institutional continuity during an uncertain moment.
The 500 Lira denomination was substantial by the purchasing standards of wartime Turkey. With the country navigating pressure from both Axis and Allied powers while maintaining a precarious neutrality, high-denomination notes circulated primarily in government and commercial transactions rather than everyday trade.