Iceland 500 Krónur

Description

The króna is the official currency of Iceland since 1918 when the country separated the currency from the Danish krone.  The name króna is derived from the Latin word “crown” and the official currency symbol: kr. In 1921, the “Ríkissjóður Íslands” (The Treasury of Iceland) took over the paper money production and introduced the first banknotes in denominations of 1, 5, 10, and 50 krónur. In 1961, the Seðlabanki Íslands (the Central Bank of Iceland) was established as the official central bank of Iceland and introduced notes in denominations of 10, 25, 100, and 500 krónur. After a monetary reform carried out in 1981 due to the high inflation suffered by the currency, the króna was revalued. New notes were put into circulation in denominations of 10, 50, 100, and 500 krónur, followed by 1000 krónur in 1984, 5000 krónur in 1986, 2000 krónur in 1987, and a 10,000 krónur note in 2013. In 2001 a new series was introduced with substantial design changes.

The 500 Icelandic krónur note front design features the portrait of Jón Sigurðsson (1811 – 1879), who was the leader of the 19th-century Icelandic independence movement, on a basic tapestry pattern background. The reverse of the note illustrates Sigurðsson and other objects, writing at a desk on a background of basic tapestry patterns (objects that are collected in the National Museum). In the lower right corner, there is a sketch of the school in Reykjavík where the parliamentary meetings were held in the time of Jón Sigurðsson. The lettering on the note is presented in the Icelandic language. This note is part of the 2001 series, and its color is red on a multicolor underprint.

Text: FIMM HUNDRUÐ KRÓNUR, SAMKVÆT LÖGUM NR. 36 22. MAI 2001, SEÐLABANKI ÍSLANDS, Jón Sigurðsson 1811 – 1879, 500.