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500 Złotych
| Issuer | Polish National Treasury (Insurekcja Kościuszkowska) |
|---|---|
| Year | 1794 |
| Type | Standard circulation banknote |
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| Obverse description | The obverse is printed in reddish-brown ink on plain cream paper, with a simple typeset border framing the entire face. At the top, the issuing authority and date decree are printed in letterpress script, followed by the denomination '500' in large numerals at the upper left alongside the word 'PIĘCSET' and a central vignette of the Polish eagle above crossed staffs. The body of the note carries a lengthy printed text in Polish detailing the legal authority of the note, with large ornamental letters 'B' and 'S' forming an underprint-style element across the lower half, above two manuscript signatures and a serial number. |
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| Obverse lettering | Bilet Skarbowy 500 PIĘCSET Uchwała Rady Najwyższej Narод. Data 8 Czeru. 1794 Na pięćset Złotych polskich rachując z jedney przyzwoitey Solarskiej "H" po 4½ Monetę Srebrney Kasa Skarbu Narodowy każdemu Ukaziciełowi niemieyszego Biletu z funduszow na umorzenie Biletow Skarbowych przeznaczonych y na ogolnych Dobrach Narodowych hypothekowniey zapłac, oraz z wszelkich dochodow Publicznych wedle powyzszy Uchwały Rady Naywyższey Narodowy przyjmowac będzie |
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Issued by the Najwyższa Rada Narodowa during the Kościuszko Uprising, this note was part of Poland's first domestically produced paper currency — printed in Warsaw while Russian forces were closing in on the city. The decision to issue paper money at all was a calculated gamble: the insurrection needed to finance an army with almost no metallic reserve, and the treasury was functionally empty when the notes were authorized in August 1794.
The uprising collapsed in October 1794 with Kościuszko's defeat at Maciejowice and the subsequent slaughter at Praga. Most circulating notes became worthless within weeks of issue, though the higher denominations like this 500 Złotych saw limited commercial use even during the rebellion — public confidence in paper at this value was never strong.