Sweden Banknotes 1000 Kronor banknote Mother Svea
Swedish National Bank - Sveriges Riksbank
Obverse: Engraving of "Mother Svea", standing on a pedestal and holding the national Coat of arms of the Kingdom of Sweden.
Reverse: Portrait of Gustav V King of Sweden in profile.
Watermark: Portrait of Gustav V King of Sweden in profile.
Size: 210 x 121 millimetres.
Sweden Banknotes - Sweden Paper Money
1952-1973 Issue
5 Kronor 10 Kronor 50 Kronor 100 Kronor 1000 Kronor
Mother Svea
Mother Svea or Mother Swea (Swedish: Moder Svea) is the female personification of Sweden and a patriotic emblem of the Swedish nation.
Mother Svea is normally depicted as a powerful female warrior, valkyrie or shieldmaiden, frequently holding a shield and standing beside a lion. Svea is a Swedish female personal name which derives from svea, an old plural genitive form meaning "of the Swedes" or the Swea. It appears in Svea rike, a translation of the old Swedish word Sverige, the Swedish name for Sweden.
The popular image is considered to have been created by Swedish writer, Anders Leijonstedt (sv) (1649–1725) when first introduced in his poem Svea Lycksaligheets Triumph (1672).
As a patriotic symbol, Moder Svea gained widespread popularity in Kunga Skald (1697), written by Swedish poet Gunno Eurelius (1661–1709) in honor of King Charles XI of Sweden. Eurelius was later ennobled with the name of Dahlstjerna.
Mother Svea appeared frequently as a national symbol in 19th-century Swedish literature and culture. She appeared on various Swedish banknotes for over seventy years, between 1890–1963.
Swedish singer Lena Philipsson and composer Torgny Söderberg wrote a song entitled Moder Swea which was introduced in the 1995 album Lena Philipsson.