1 Pound 2001, Cyprus
| in Krause book | Number: 60с |
| Years of issue: | 01.02.2001 |
| Edition: | AG - AW 15 000 000 |
| Signatures: | Director: Afxentis Afxentiou |
| Serie: | 1997 - 2001 Issue |
| Specimen of: | 01.10.1997 |
| Material: | Cotton fiber |
| Size (mm): | 140 х 68 |
| Printer: | Francois-Charles Oberthur Fiduciaire SA, Colombes |
* All pictures marked 
are increased partially by magnifying glass, the remaining open in full size by clicking on the image.
** The word "Specimen" is present only on some of electronic pictures, in accordance with banknote images publication rules of appropriate banks.
Description
Watermark:
The engraving for watermark is made after Aphrodite statue, I century BC (Marble). Held in Cyprus Museum, in Nicosia.
Aphrodite is an ancient Greek goddess associated with love, beauty, pleasure, passion and procreation. She was syncretized with the Roman goddess Venus. Aphrodite's major symbols include myrtles, roses, doves, sparrows, and swans. The cult of Aphrodite was largely derived from that of the Phoenician goddess Astarte, a cognate of the East Semitic goddess Ishtar, whose cult was based on the Sumerian cult of Inanna. Aphrodite's main cult centers were Cythera, Cyprus, Corinth, and Athens. Her main festival was the Aphrodisia, which was celebrated annually in midsummer. In Laconia, Aphrodite was worshipped as a warrior goddess. She was also the patron goddess of prostitutes, an association which led early scholars to propose the concept of "sacred prostitution" in Greco-Roman culture, an idea which is now generally seen as erroneous.
Avers:
On left side is a young girl in Cypriot national costume "Sarka" (σάρκα).
Unmarried girls always wore dark red headdress (in some areas of olive or green in color), decorated with natural or artificial flowers.
The existence of "sarka" in "sayia" type of costume, in the oldest women’s costume of Cyprus, should question those who support that "sarka" was imported to Cyprus at the times of Queen Amalia of Greece. What could have happened is that in towns-cities, at some point it was transformed and became urban. The "urban sarka" must have taken its final form from fashion influences from abroad whereas remained in its original form in the areas of Karpasia and Pafos.
Sarka is a long jacket with wide sleeves, covering the chest, because it was worn by a thin silk or half-silk transparent women's shirt. According to ancient tradition, Kaposi's suit was made of dark black cotton fabric and was decorated at the seams and behind foliage or other embroidery of gold thread. Under Sarka was a long skirt with a traditional Cypriot women's silver belt at the buckle.
This women's clothing was inspired by Greek antiquity with great social meaning, clothes with deep roots in the social structure of the traditional Cypriot society.
Top center is the coat of arms of Cyprus.
The coat of arms of the Republic of Cyprus depicts a dove carrying an olive branch (a well-known symbol of peace) over “1960”, the year of Cypriot independence from British rule. The background is a copper-yellow colour; this symbolizes the large deposits of copper ore on Cyprus (chiefly in the form of chalcopyrite, which is yellow in colour). The arms is not violating the rule of tincture, since the dove is not argent (silver) but blazoned as of the colour proper, i.e. it has the colour it would have in nature, in this case white.
The name of the bank in Greek and Turkish languages.
Lower is the island of Cyprus.
Denominations in numerals are in lower left and top right corners. Centered in words.
Revers:
Handmade pottery and lace in the background of the village of Kato Drys.
Kato Drys, is a small village in Cyprus, southwest of Larnaca. It is near the villages of Pano Lefkara (4 km.), Kato Lefkara (4 km.), and Vavla (6 km.). Its average altitude is 520 meters above sea level. The village is set in hilly terrain with narrow, deep valleys, through which flows the Agios Minas river. According to one version, the village got its name from the Greek word "Dryes" ("oaks"), because there were many oak trees. Kato Drys is known for the birth of Saint Neophytos, the Hermit, in 1134.
On banknote are Lefkara lace embroidery items. About Lefkara lace embroidery, please, read here.
Denomination in words is in lower center. In numerals are in top left and right corners, also in lower left.
Comments:
Increased security.
The British introduced the pound sterling unit to Cyprus in 1879 at a rate of one to 180 Turkish piastres. It remained equal in value to the pound sterling until 1972 and was initially divided into 20 shillings (σελίνι / σελίνια, şilin). The shilling was divided into 9 piastres (γρόσι / γρόσια, kuruş), thus establishing a nomenclature link to the previous currency. The piastre was itself divided into 40 para (like the kuruş). The para denomination did not appear on any coins or banknotes but was used on postage stamps.
In 1955, Cyprus decimalized with 1000 mils (μιλς, mil) to the pound. Colloquially, the 5 mil coin was known as a "piastre" (not an exact equivalence) and the 50 mil coin as a "shilling" (an exact equivalence). The subdivision was changed to 100 cents (σεντ, sent) to the pound on 3 October 1983. At that time, the smallest coin still in circulation was that of 5 mils. This was renamed as ½ cent, but soon was abolished. Mil-denominated coins are no longer legal tender.
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