5 won 1978 specimen
About This Note
This is an uncirculated 1978 North Korean 5 won specimen note (Pick P-19s) showcasing exceptional print quality with crisp, sharp impressions throughout. The obverse features two figures in traditional Korean dress against an industrial cityscape backdrop, while the reverse displays a dramatic misty mountain landscape—both characteristic of DPRK currency design emphasizing national identity and socialist industrial progress. As a specimen note in pristine condition, this piece represents an important example of late-1970s North Korean currency design before the regime's economic isolation deepened.
Common. North Korean 5 won notes from 1978 were produced in substantial quantities as part of regular currency circulation. Specimen notes (marked with 'S' designation) represent special presentation printings but were created in sufficient numbers that they remain readily available to collectors. The note's ubiquity in the collector market and lack of documented low print run or recall status support a common classification.
This 1978 note was issued during the early years of Kim Il-sung's consolidation of power in North Korea, a period marked by emphasis on socialist industrialization and national self-reliance (Juche ideology). The front design's juxtaposition of industrial factories and smokestacks against traditional-dressed figures reflects the regime's propaganda message of modernization rooted in Korean cultural values. The reverse's depiction of a majestic mountain landscape—likely representing Mount Paektu or similar iconic Korean peaks—reinforces nationalist sentiment and connection to the Korean peninsula's natural heritage.
The obverse features two figures representing socialist ideals: a male worker on the left in dark traditional dress and a female figure on the right in patterned traditional Korean clothing, positioned against an industrial landscape with multiple factories, smokestacks, and modern buildings. A circular national emblem incorporating landscape imagery and radiating lines appears in the upper left, while decorative numerals '5' in ornate cartouches occupy the upper right and lower left corners. The reverse presents a romantic landscape dominated by a single dramatic mountain peak rendered in gray tones with misty atmospheric effects, flanked by ornamental borders in green and pink tones. Flowering plants (likely peonies, symbols of longevity and dignity in Korean culture) appear in the lower left with accompanying decorative foliage. The entire design is framed by intricate geometric and ornamental borders.
Front side: '조선민주주의인민공화국' (Democratic People's Republic of Korea), '중앙은행' (Central Bank), '5' (denomination), '원' (won/currency unit), serial number designation '11 000000'. Back side: '조선민주주의인민공화국중앙은행' (Central Bank of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea), '5' (denomination), '원' (won/currency unit).
Intaglio (engraved) printing with multicolor lithography for border elements. The fine line engraving is evident throughout both sides in the detailed rendering of figures, landscape features, and intricate geometric patterns. The color application in decorative elements and the atmospheric effects in the mountain landscape suggest combination intaglio and lithographic techniques typical of North Korean currency production by the central bank's printing facilities during this period.
This is catalogued as P-19s, the specimen version of the 1978 5 won denomination. Standard circulation versions exist as P-19. No additional varieties based on signature, date, or overprint variations are evident from the visual analysis. The serial number designation shown ('11 000000') may indicate a specimen issue run, though further research into North Korean banknote serial number conventions would be required for definitive variety classification.
