500 Leva, Bulgaria, 1948 (Pick 77)

This 500 Leva note was issued in Bulgaria, dated 1948. It belongs to the First lev (1881-1952) currency system. Issuing authority and period recorded in the catalogue: People's Republic (1946-1990). It measures 158 × 80 mm and is printed on paper. The Standard Catalog of World Paper Money lists the type as Pick 77.

Obverse: The coat of arms in the left,the figure "500" in a vignette in the middle. Its lettering reads “Петстотин Лева / Българската Народна Банка / Плаща Предявителю / София - Държавна Печатница - 1948 г.”. Translation given in the catalogue: “Five Hundred Leva The Bulgarian National Bank Pays the Bearer Sofia - State Printing House - 1948 y.”. Reverse: A picture of tobacco pickers. Its lettering reads “Петстотин Лева / Banque Nationale de Bulgarie / За подправка виновните се наказват съгласно чл. 183 и 191 от наказателния закон”. Translation given in the catalogue: “Five Hundred Leva Banque Nationale de Bulgarie For forgery the guilty are punished according Art. 183 and 191 of the criminal law”.

The note was printed by State Printing House (Държавна печатница), Sofia, Bulgaria. Design is credited to Tzvetana Kosturkova. Watermark: A net of rhomboid forms. Demonetized: 12 May 1952. Identification note: match the value, issuing bank, printed date and Pick number together; dates and signature combinations distinguish sub-varieties, which are not separated in this entry. Details follow the Numista catalogue entry and the Standard Catalog reference it cites; they have not been checked against a central-bank archive.