A new 20 Lei banknote launched by Banca Nationalӑ a României on 1st December is the first in the country’s history to feature a woman - Ecaterina Teodoroiu (1894-1917) - who fought and died as a front line solider in the Romanian army in the First World War.
Printed on CCL Secure’s GUARDIAN™ polymer substrate, the design incorporates a bouquet of crocuses, the symbol of the Romanian Scouts movement (Ecaterina was a member), the coat of arms of Romania, the winged figure of Victory from the country’s Victory Medal, and an image of the Mărășești Mausoleum.
Security features included in the new note include a complex window design that features a gold Metalix™ trumpet, a shadow image that shows the portrait of Ecaterina Teodoroiu and the Bank’s logo, a MAGRead thread and, on the reverse of the note, an IRISwitch stripe.
Metalix is a feature available with GUARDIAN polymer substrate that provides a metallic sheen in a range of colours adding to the impact of an image within the design, as well as offering exceptional durability.
To mark the 140th anniversary of the launch of the first 20 Lei banknotes, Banca Nationalӑ a României is also issuing a new, commemorative, polymer version of the note on CCL Secure’s GUARDIAN.
The design is the same size, style and overall look as the original 19th Century note, but has been brought up to date not only by the choice of polymer as the substrate, but also with the inclusion of advanced features that are only available with polymer.
Issued in a short, limited edition run of just 30,000 copies, the note includes features such as a large transparent window, VIVID™Colour, VIVID™ White, iridescent print, embossed intaglio, and cameo images.
“We’re delighted to work with Banca Nationalӑ a României on the launch of both of the new 20 Lei notes,” said CCL Secure’s MD Neil Saunders. “It’s the latest stage in a long relationship which has seen the full family of Romanian banknotes transition to polymer.”