1 litas LITHUANIA (1997) 75 Years of Bank of Lithuania

in the centre Coat of Arms (Vytis) by Arvydas Každailis, below face value: 1 centered, along the right edge: LITAS and year of issue: 1997; along the left edge: LIETUVA (Lithuania)

centered portrait of prof. Vladas Jurgutis (1885-1966), the first director of Bank of Lithuania, below, his signature centered; along the edge: LIETUVOS BANKUI IR LITUI 75 (75 years of Bank of Lithuania)

five reeded and five plain sections

29 IX 1997

15 I 2015

Rimantas Eidėjus

Lietuvos Monetų Kalykla (The Lithuanian Mint), Vilnius

1997

200 000

The 1922 event of hyperinflation forced the need of exchange German Marks into some national currency. A newly established Bank of Lithuania (Lietuvos Bankas) began issuing Lithuanian "litas" (2 X) in response to Latvian "lats" issued a while earlier the same year (3 VIII). The first bank director became prof. Vladas Jurgutis. An interesting fact is that before he devoted his life to political and economical recovery of the young country, he had had a function of parish priest in Saratov and Astrachan.

We are attaching a photo of prof. Jurgutis and his signature (here found on a 50-litas banknote from 1928), which became probable outlines for the design.