{"product_id":"nagorno-karabakh-p-2-drams-light-red","title":"JESUS CHRIST Nagorno-Karabakh Artsakh 2 Dram 2004 UNC—Armenia Azerbaijan War 61629","description":"\u003cp\u003eNagorno-Karabakh (Artsakh, ethnic Armenian Republic breakaway from Azerbaijan 1991–2024) P-901 2 Drams 2004, Uncirculated.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eBanknote Characteristics\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eFront:\u003c\/strong\u003e National Coat of Arms of Nagorno-Karabakh; \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Gandzasar\" target=\"_blank\"\u003eGandzasar Cathedral of Saint John the Baptist\u003c\/a\u003e (Madakert district); \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Gregory_the_Illuminator\" target=\"_blank\"\u003eSaint Gregory the Illuminator\u003c\/a\u003e\n\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eBack:\u003c\/strong\u003e National Coat of Arms of Nagorno-Karabakh; bas-relief Christian cross; \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Baptism_of_Jesus\" target=\"_blank\"\u003eJohn the Baptist baptizing Jesus Christ\u003c\/a\u003e\n\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eWatermark:\u003c\/strong\u003e Repeating text \"SECURITY PRINT BY OSD\"\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eSignature:\u003c\/strong\u003e Spartak Tevosian (ST) — Minister of Finance\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eIssuing institution:\u003c\/strong\u003e Ministry of Finance, Republic of Nagorno-Karabakh\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eCurrency:\u003c\/strong\u003e \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Nagorno-Karabakh_dram\" target=\"_blank\"\u003eArtsakh Dram\u003c\/a\u003e (2003–2023; demonetized 1 January 2024)\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eDenomination:\u003c\/strong\u003e 2 Dram\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eComposition:\u003c\/strong\u003e Paper\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eSize:\u003c\/strong\u003e 150 × 80 mm\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eDemonetized:\u003c\/strong\u003e \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Demonetization_(currency)\" target=\"_blank\"\u003eYes\u003c\/a\u003e — 1 January 2024\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePrinter:\u003c\/strong\u003e \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/%C3%96sterreichische_Banknoten-_und_Sicherheitsdruck_GmbH\" target=\"_blank\"\u003eÖsterreichische Banknoten- und Sicherheitsdruck GmbH\u003c\/a\u003e, Vienna, Austria (1816–present)\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eThe Baptism of Jesus: What the Reverse Depicts\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe scene on the reverse — \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/John_the_Baptist\" target=\"_blank\"\u003eJohn the Baptist\u003c\/a\u003e baptizing \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Jesus\" target=\"_blank\"\u003eJesus Christ\u003c\/a\u003e in the \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Jordan_River\" target=\"_blank\"\u003eJordan River\u003c\/a\u003e — is one of the most theologically charged moments in the Christian Gospels, and one of the few events recorded in all four of them. In the accounts of \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Gospel_of_Matthew\" target=\"_blank\"\u003eMatthew\u003c\/a\u003e, \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Gospel_of_Mark\" target=\"_blank\"\u003eMark\u003c\/a\u003e, \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Gospel_of_Luke\" target=\"_blank\"\u003eLuke\u003c\/a\u003e, and \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Gospel_of_John\" target=\"_blank\"\u003eJohn\u003c\/a\u003e, Jesus comes to the Jordan where John has been baptizing crowds in preparation for the coming of the Messiah. John initially resists — \"I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?\" — but Jesus insists. As he emerges from the water, the heavens open, the \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Holy_Spirit\" target=\"_blank\"\u003eHoly Spirit\u003c\/a\u003e descends in the form of a dove, and a voice declares: \u003cem\u003e\"This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.\"\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eFor the \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Armenian_Apostolic_Church\" target=\"_blank\"\u003eArmenian Apostolic Church\u003c\/a\u003e — one of the oldest Christian churches in the world, tracing its founding to the apostles \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Thaddeus_of_Edessa\" target=\"_blank\"\u003eThaddeus\u003c\/a\u003e and \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Bartholomew_the_Apostle\" target=\"_blank\"\u003eBartholomew\u003c\/a\u003e in the 1st century AD — the Baptism of Jesus holds particular liturgical weight. \u003cb\u003eArmenia celebrates the Nativity and Baptism of Christ together on 6 January\u003c\/b\u003e (\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Theophany\" target=\"_blank\"\u003eTheophany\u003c\/a\u003e), unlike Western churches which separate Christmas and Epiphany. The feast is called \u003cem\u003eAstvatsahaytnoutyoun\u003c\/em\u003e — the Manifestation of God. Placing the Baptism scene on the reverse of a banknote issued by a self-declared Armenian Christian republic was not incidental: it was a declaration of identity as much as a religious image, asserting that Artsakh's claim to the land was rooted in a Christian civilisation predating Islam, Azerbaijan, and the Soviet Union alike.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eNagorno-Karabakh: A Disputed Land\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Nagorno-Karabakh\" target=\"_blank\"\u003eNagorno-Karabakh\u003c\/a\u003e — also known as \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Republic_of_Artsakh\" target=\"_blank\"\u003eArtsakh\u003c\/a\u003e — was a landlocked, mountainous enclave situated within the internationally recognized borders of Azerbaijan, but governed for decades by an ethnic Armenian administration following the collapse of the Soviet Union. The region had been an autonomous oblast within Soviet Azerbaijan; when the USSR dissolved in 1991, a war erupted between Armenia and Azerbaijan over its status. A ceasefire in 1994 left the enclave and surrounding territories under Armenian control, but no internationally recognized state ever acknowledged its independence.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe self-declared Republic of Nagorno-Karabakh (later renamed the Republic of Artsakh) maintained its own government, currency, and institutions for over three decades. The \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Nagorno-Karabakh_conflict\" target=\"_blank\"\u003eNagorno-Karabakh conflict\u003c\/a\u003e flared repeatedly — in the \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/First_Nagorno-Karabakh_War\" target=\"_blank\"\u003eFirst War (1988–1994)\u003c\/a\u003e, the \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/2016_Nagorno-Karabakh_war\" target=\"_blank\"\u003eFour-Day War (2016)\u003c\/a\u003e, the \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/2020_Nagorno-Karabakh_war\" target=\"_blank\"\u003e44-Day War (2020)\u003c\/a\u003e, and finally the \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/2023_Azerbaijani_offensive_in_Nagorno-Karabakh\" target=\"_blank\"\u003eSeptember 2023 offensive\u003c\/a\u003e, in which Azerbaijan restored full sovereignty in under 24 hours. The Armenian population, which had constituted the overwhelming majority of the enclave's residents, fled to Armenia within weeks. On 1 January 2024, the Republic of Artsakh was formally dissolved.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eHow These Banknotes Came to Be\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe Artsakh dram series was an unusual chapter in numismatic history. The notes were not produced to meet the demands of everyday commerce — they were conceived as a deliberate act of nation-building through philately and numismatics. The \u003cstrong\u003eEducational Coin Company\u003c\/strong\u003e, a numismatic wholesale firm based in Highland, New York, worked in conjunction with the government of the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic to commission the series. The printing contract was awarded to the \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/%C3%96sterreichische_Banknoten-_und_Sicherheitsdruck_GmbH\" target=\"_blank\"\u003eOesterreichische Banknoten- und Sicherheitsdruck GmbH\u003c\/a\u003e in Vienna — one of Europe's most prestigious security printers, with a history dating to 1816.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe notes were issued in 2004 under the authority of the Ministry of Finance, signed by Finance Minister Spartak Tevosian. They were denominated in the Artsakh dram, pegged at parity with the Armenian dram, and declared legal tender — but their primary purpose was always collector distribution and international visibility. The entire dram currency was demonetized on \u003cstrong\u003e1 January 2024\u003c\/strong\u003e, following the dissolution of the Republic of Artsakh. These notes now stand as artifacts of a state that no longer exists.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eGandzasar Cathedral of Saint John the Baptist\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Gandzasar\" target=\"_blank\"\u003eGandzasar\u003c\/a\u003e is a medieval Armenian monastery complex in the Madakert district, completed in 1216–1240 under the patronage of the Armenian prince \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Hasan-Jalal_Dawla\" target=\"_blank\"\u003eHasan-Jalal Dawla\u003c\/a\u003e. Its Cathedral of Saint John the Baptist is considered one of the finest examples of \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Armenian_architecture\" target=\"_blank\"\u003eArmenian ecclesiastical architecture\u003c\/a\u003e, renowned for its intricately carved drum and dome and its elaborate \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Khachkar\" target=\"_blank\"\u003ekhachkar\u003c\/a\u003e (cross-stone) reliefs. The monastery served for centuries as the seat of the \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Catholicos_of_Caucasian_Albania\" target=\"_blank\"\u003eCatholicos of Caucasian Albania\u003c\/a\u003e and remained a living religious site through the Soviet period and the years of Artsakh self-rule. Its appearance on this banknote was a pointed assertion of Armenian Christian heritage in the region — a claim rendered in stone and ink at a moment when the political future of the land remained violently contested.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eA Final Reflection: Currency of a Vanished State\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThere is something quietly extraordinary about a banknote issued by a country the world refused to recognize. The Artsakh 2 Dram note was printed in Vienna, distributed through a New York coin dealer, and declared legal tender in a republic that existed in a kind of international limbo — real to the people who lived there, invisible to the governments that drew the maps. It carried the symbols of a civilization — the cathedral, the cross, the coat of arms, the Baptism — and asked the world to look.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe world, in the end, looked away. But the note remains. It is now a primary document of a state that lasted thirty-three years and then was gone — a small rectangle of paper that outlasted the republic it was meant to represent. For the collector, it is irreplaceable: there will be no more Artsakh dram issues, no reprint, no successor series. What exists is what exists.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAn essential acquisition for numismatists specializing in disputed territories, post-Soviet transitional issues, or the broader Caucasus region. With the Republic of Artsakh dissolved as of 1 January 2024, the entire dram series has passed permanently into history, making Uncirculated examples increasingly difficult to source.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"World Money Store","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":51592077771063,"sku":"NK901U","price":2.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0969\/7165\/3431\/files\/Screenshot_2026-04-11_at_11.36.08.png?v=1775921850","url":"https:\/\/worldmoneystore.com\/products\/nagorno-karabakh-p-2-drams-light-red","provider":"World Money Store","version":"1.0","type":"link"}