A new collector banknote has been put on the market today. It is a very unique note, because it has an unusual face value of PLN 19. The banknote commemorates the 100th anniversary of the existence of the Polish Security Printing Works (PWPW), and its unusual face value refers to 1919 – the date on which PWPW was first established. The project is a result of long-term cooperation between the National Bank of Poland – the issuer – and PWPW – the producer of banknotes.

– Today, the National Bank of Poland issues the first ever banknote with the image of its manufacturer’s headquarters, but also the first ever banknote with an unusual face value of PLN 19. The number is a sign of the NBP’s regard for PWPW, as it refers to 1919 – the institution’s founding year – and also 2019 – the year in which PWPW celebrates its centenary – said Maciej Biernat, President of the Board of PWPW.

The front side of the banknote includes a portrait of Ignacy Jan Paderewski in intaligo printing. To the left of the portrait, there is a stylized image of the Order of the White Eagle and the inscription “niepodległa” (independent), reproduced from Józef Piłsudski’s manuscript, which serves as the logo of the official celebrations of the 100th anniversary of Poland regaining its independence. The right side of the banknote contains a holographic stripe with the image of an eagle visible in a window in the paper substrate. This holographic element has been used for the first time in Polish banknotes, and it is not only a modern security solution, but also a visually striking one. A laurel branch visible in the lower left corner of the note uses the Umbra4Note® protection technology developed at PWPW. It is a special type of latent image depicted in intaglio printing technique.

The back side of the banknote depicts the image of the PWPW building, presented against the backdrop of a panoramic view of contemporary Warsaw. The PWPW logo uses optically variable security technology – SPARK Live®, which changes colour from maroon to purple, depending on the viewing angle. The vertical stripe consists of alternately repeated “19” (the face value) and the abbreviation “NBP”, printed with iridescent paint (the stripe is also visible in UV light).

The banknote was designed by Justyna Kopecka, and the engraving of Ignacy Jan Paderewski was made by Krystian Michalczuk, a graphic designer at PWPW.

The banknote commemorating the 100th anniversary of PWPW is the eleventh collector banknote issued in Poland and the second in the “Independence” series. Collector banknotes are issued for collectors and numismatists to celebrate important events. In addition, they commemorate outstanding figures, highlighting their significant role in the history of Poland and Poles.

Collector banknotes are also a legal tender, that is, they are general circulation notes. They differ from the traditional banknotes in many ways. The symbolic elements used in images of figures and events are richer, and the notes have different layouts and thematic details, as well as technical and graphic parameters, such as the number and form of anti-counterfeiting security measures, colours, dimensions and printing techniques.

The first Polish collector banknote was issued in October 2006. It was the “John Paul II” note with the face value of PLN 50. The following collector notes were subsequently issued:

• PLN 10 note commemorating the 90th anniversary of Poland regaining its independence (issue date: 30/10/2008);
• PLN 200 note commemorating the 200th birthday anniversary of Juliusz Słowacki (issue date: 23/09/2009);
• PLN 20 note commemorating the 200th birthday anniversary of Frédéric Chopin (issue date: 22/02/2010);
• PLN 20 note  commemorating the 100th anniversary of awarding of the Nobel Prize in Chemistry to Maria Skłodowska-Curie (issue date: 25/11/2011);
• the first polymer banknote with the face value of PLN 20 commemorating the centenary of the formation of the Polish Legions (05/08/2014);
• PLN 20 note commemorating the 600th birthday anniversary of Jan Długosz (issue date: 24/08/2015);
• PLN 20 note commemorating the 1050th anniversary of the Baptism of Poland (issue date: 12/04/2016);
• PLN 20 note commemorating the 300th anniversary of the coronation of the image of Our Lady of Częstochowa (issue date: 21/08/2017);
• PLN 10 note commemorating the 100th anniversary of Poland regaining its independence (issue date: 31/08/2018) – the start of the “Independence” series.

FOT: Rafał Jaworski PWPW S.A.