{"product_id":"sweden-p-61-20-kronor-1991-5-vf-large-ver-writer-lagerlof-goose-woman-lgbt","title":"Sweden P-61 20 Kronor 1991-1995 VF—Selma Lagerlöf—Nils Holgersson","description":"\u003cp\u003eThe large-format predecessor to Sweden's iconic Lagerlöf 20 Kronor — issued from 1991 to 1995, this earlier note shares the same beloved imagery but is notably scarcer, demonetized a full decade before its smaller successor.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eFront\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eColors:\u003c\/strong\u003e purple-violet engraving; pale green-yellow background; gold and blue accents\u003c\/li\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePortrait:\u003c\/strong\u003e Selma Lagerlöf (1858–1940), Swedish author and Nobel laureate\u003c\/li\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eVignette:\u003c\/strong\u003e Lagerlöf driving a horse carriage through the Värmland landscape\u003c\/li\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eText excerpt:\u003c\/strong\u003e brief passage from \u003cem\u003eGösta Berlings Saga\u003c\/em\u003e (1891)\u003c\/li\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eLettering:\u003c\/strong\u003e SVERIGES RIKSBANK \/ TJUGO KRONOR\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eBack\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eColors:\u003c\/strong\u003e pale green-yellow background; purple-violet engraving; blue accents\u003c\/li\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eVignette:\u003c\/strong\u003e passage motif from \u003cem\u003eThe Wonderful Adventures of Nils\u003c\/em\u003e — Nils Holgersson and Mårten the Goose flying over the flatlands of Scania (Skåne), southern Sweden\u003c\/li\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eLettering:\u003c\/strong\u003e TJUGO KRONOR\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eOther Characteristics\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eVarieties:\u003c\/strong\u003e you may receive any variety:\n    \u003cul\u003e\n      \u003cli\u003e\n\u003cem\u003eP-61a\u003c\/em\u003e — 1991, Per Borg \u0026amp; Bengt Dennis\u003c\/li\u003e\n      \u003cli\u003e\n\u003cem\u003eP-61a\u003c\/em\u003e — 1992, Staffan Burenstam Linder \u0026amp; Bengt Dennis\u003c\/li\u003e\n      \u003cli\u003e\n\u003cem\u003eP-61b\u003c\/em\u003e — 1994, Staffan Burenstam Linder \u0026amp; Urban Bäckström\u003c\/li\u003e\n      \u003cli\u003e\n\u003cem\u003eP-61b\u003c\/em\u003e — 1995, Kjell-Olof Feldt \u0026amp; Urban Bäckström\u003c\/li\u003e\n    \u003c\/ul\u003e\n    \u003cem\u003eNote: Year of issue is the first digit of the 10-digit serial number.\u003c\/em\u003e\n  \u003c\/li\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eCatalog numbers:\u003c\/strong\u003e P-61; Numista N#205675\u003c\/li\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eWatermark:\u003c\/strong\u003e Two vertical portraits of Selma Lagerlöf\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 130 × 72 mm\u003c\/li\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eIssuing entity:\u003c\/strong\u003e \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/www.riksbank.se\" target=\"_blank\"\u003eSveriges Riksbank\u003c\/a\u003e (National Bank of Sweden)\u003c\/li\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Demonetization_(currency)\" target=\"_blank\"\u003eDemonetized\u003c\/a\u003e:\u003c\/strong\u003e 31 December 2005\u003c\/li\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eCurrency:\u003c\/strong\u003e Swedish Krona (SEK, 1873–date)\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\n\u003ch2\u003eThe Nobel Laureate on Paper\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eSelma Lagerlöf was born in \u003cstrong\u003e1858\u003c\/strong\u003e in \u003cstrong\u003eVärmland\u003c\/strong\u003e — the very landscape depicted on this note's front. She grew up on the family estate of Mårbäcka, surrounded by the forests and lakes that would later fill her fiction. When she won the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1909, she became the \u003cstrong\u003efirst woman ever to do so\u003c\/strong\u003e. She used the prize money to buy back Mårbäcka, which had been sold to pay debts. The \u003cstrong\u003ehorse carriage\u003c\/strong\u003e scene on the front is drawn from \u003cem\u003eGösta Berlings Saga\u003c\/em\u003e, her debut novel — a wild, romantic tale of a \u003cstrong\u003edefrocked priest\u003c\/strong\u003e and the women who shape his fate.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch2\u003eNils and the Goose\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe reverse depicts one of the most iconic images in Swedish children's literature: young \u003cstrong\u003eNils Holgersson\u003c\/strong\u003e, magically shrunk to thumb-size, soaring over \u003cstrong\u003eSkåne\u003c\/strong\u003e on the back of \u003cstrong\u003eMårten the Goose\u003c\/strong\u003e. Lagerlöf wrote \u003cem\u003eThe Wonderful Adventures of Nils\u003c\/em\u003e (1906–07) on commission from the Swedish school board — it was meant to be a geography textbook. Instead, it became a beloved classic translated into over 40 languages. The flatlands of Skåne below are rendered with cartographic precision, a nod to the book's original educational purpose.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch2\u003eThe Larger, Earlier Note\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis large-type note was the \u003cstrong\u003efirst Swedish banknote to feature Selma Lagerlöf\u003c\/strong\u003e, introduced in 1991. At 130 × 72 mm it is noticeably bigger than the 1997 small-type redesign, and it was \u003cstrong\u003edemonetized in 2005\u003c\/strong\u003e — a full eleven years before its successor. Fewer were printed and fewer survive in collectible condition, making VF examples increasingly hard to find at this price point.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eAbout Sweden\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eOrigin of name:\u003c\/strong\u003e From Old Norse \u003cem\u003eSvíþjóð\u003c\/em\u003e — \"people of the Svear,\" a Germanic tribe that dominated the region in the early medieval period\u003c\/li\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eCapital:\u003c\/strong\u003e \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Stockholm\" target=\"_blank\"\u003eStockholm\u003c\/a\u003e (city pop. ~1 million; metro ~2.4 million)\n    \u003cul\u003e\n      \u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eOrigin of name:\u003c\/strong\u003e From Old Swedish \u003cem\u003estock\u003c\/em\u003e (log) + \u003cem\u003eholme\u003c\/em\u003e (islet) — \"log islet,\" referring to a small island where a log boom once stood at the mouth of Lake Mälaren\u003c\/li\u003e\n    \u003c\/ul\u003e\n  \u003c\/li\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePopulation:\u003c\/strong\u003e ~10.5 million (UN 2024) — comparable to Michigan or North Carolina\u003c\/li\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eArea:\u003c\/strong\u003e 450,295 km² (173,860 mi²) — slightly larger than California\u003c\/li\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eGDP per capita (\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Purchasing_power_parity\" target=\"_blank\"\u003ePPP\u003c\/a\u003e):\u003c\/strong\u003e ~$65,000 (IMF 2024) — among the highest in Europe\u003c\/li\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eMain exports:\u003c\/strong\u003e machinery, motor vehicles, paper products, iron and steel, chemicals, pharmaceuticals\u003c\/li\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eBorders:\u003c\/strong\u003e Norway (west\/north), Finland (northeast); maritime borders with Denmark, Germany, Poland, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, and Russia\u003c\/li\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eOfficial\/spoken language:\u003c\/strong\u003e Swedish; recognized minority languages include Sami, Finnish, Meänkieli, Romani, and Yiddish\u003c\/li\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eEthnicities:\u003c\/strong\u003e \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Swedes\" target=\"_blank\"\u003eSwedish\u003c\/a\u003e (majority); significant communities of \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Finns_in_Sweden\" target=\"_blank\"\u003eFinnish\u003c\/a\u003e, \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Sami_people\" target=\"_blank\"\u003eSami\u003c\/a\u003e, \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Syrians_in_Sweden\" target=\"_blank\"\u003eSyrian\u003c\/a\u003e, \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Iraqis_in_Sweden\" target=\"_blank\"\u003eIraqi\u003c\/a\u003e, and \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Somalis_in_Sweden\" target=\"_blank\"\u003eSomali\u003c\/a\u003e origin\u003c\/li\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eMemberships:\u003c\/strong\u003e \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/United_Nations\" target=\"_blank\"\u003eUnited Nations\u003c\/a\u003e (1946); \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/European_Union\" target=\"_blank\"\u003eEuropean Union\u003c\/a\u003e (1995); \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/NATO\" target=\"_blank\"\u003eNATO\u003c\/a\u003e (2024 — among the most recent members); \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/OECD\" target=\"_blank\"\u003eOECD\u003c\/a\u003e; \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Nordic_Council\" target=\"_blank\"\u003eNordic Council\u003c\/a\u003e (founding member, 1952)\u003c\/li\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eSovereignty:\u003c\/strong\u003e Unified Kingdom of Sweden established ~12th century; union with Norway dissolved 1905; constitutional monarchy and parliamentary democracy\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eOwn this note\u003c\/strong\u003e and hold the original Lagerlöf — the larger, earlier, and scarcer of Sweden's two 20 Kronor tributes to its greatest literary voice.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"World Money Store","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":52456543584567,"sku":"SE61VF","price":1.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0969\/7165\/3431\/files\/61ocopy.jpg?v=1781270992","url":"https:\/\/worldmoneystore.com\/products\/sweden-p-61-20-kronor-1991-5-vf-large-ver-writer-lagerlof-goose-woman-lgbt","provider":"World Money Store","version":"1.0","type":"link"}