An exhibition of pencil sketches of details from Estonian kroon banknotes is opening at the Eesti Pank Museum

From today the Eesti Pank Museum at Estonia pst 11 will host an exhibition on the artistic details of the kroon banknotes, with pencil drawings by the artist who designed the Estonian kroons, Vladimir Taiger, showing details from the illustrations on the banknotes. A special souvenir reproduction of the nightingale graphic illustration that appeared on the 100-kroon note will be on sale in the museum shop.

To mark the 30th anniversary of the monetary reform, the Eesti Pank museum is exhibiting details from the 25, 50, 100 and 500-kroon banknotes drawn in pencil by Vladimir Taiger, the artist who designed the Estonian kroon notes. These rarely seen works are displayed against the blue, black and white flag fluttering at the top of the Pikk Hermann tower. "I chose to put on the notes people who would be beautiful to see. There are many photographs of Hurt, but very few of Koidula that would be appropriate to put on the currency", said Taiger when explaining his choice of great Estonian cultural figures. When designing the backs of the banknotes, the artist usually went to the site to take photographs from which he could draw his designs. He drew the Estonian cliffs on the 100-kroon note from memory though.

To accompany the exhibition, the Eesti Pank museum shop is selling a reproduction of the pencil drawing from 1991 by Vladimir Taiger of the singing nightingale, which was a vignette on the front of the 100-kroon banknote. The repro is mounted in a window in a blue passepartout with the logo of the anniversary of the monetary reform on the back. It is priced at 20 euros and can be bought from the Eesti Pank museum shop during its opening hours from today.

The competition to design the Estonian kroon banknotes was announced on 8 December 1989, and the designers had only a month to produce their designs, which was a very short time for such a job. In total 35 designs were submitted for the competition. One entrant was the artist Vladimir Taiger, who submitted designs for the 10, 25 and 100-kroon notes. He was later asked to design the 50 and 500-kroon notes as well. The one and two-kroon notes were designed by the graphic artist Urmas Ploomipuu (1942-1990).

The exhibition is part of a series of events to commemorate the 30th anniversary of the monetary reform in 1992, and it will be open to the public in the Nobles' hall of the Eesti Pank museum until 17 September 2022. Read more about the exhibition on the Eesti Pank website.

The Eesti Pank Museum and museum shop are open from Tuesdays to Fridays 12-17 and on Saturdays at 11-16.

Additional information:
Hanna Jürgenson
Eesti Pank
Tel: 5692 0930
Press enquiries: [email protected]