Greek Banknotes 50 Drachmai banknote 1955 Pericles
Bank of Greece
Bank of Greece
Obverse: Bust of Pericles with the Corinthian Helmet.
Reverse: "The Age of Pericles" painted by Philipp von Foltz, 1853. Pericles orating on the Pnyx - Famous speech given at the end of the first year of the Peloponnesian War (431-404 BC) as a part of the annual public funeral for the war dead.
Printer: IETA - Idryma Trapezas Ellados - Bank of Greece Printing Works.
TPAΠEZA THΣ EΛΛAΔOΣ - BANK OF GREECE
1954-1956 Issue
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Pericles
Pericles (c. 495 – 429 BC) was arguably the most prominent and influential Greek statesman, orator and general of Athens during the Golden Age— specifically the time between the Persian and Peloponnesian wars. He was descended, through his mother, from the powerful and historically influential Alcmaeonid family.
Pericles had such a profound influence on Athenian society that Thucydides, a contemporary historian, acclaimed him as "the first citizen of Athens". Pericles turned the Delian League into an Athenian empire, and led his countrymen during the first two years of the Peloponnesian War. The period during which he led Athens, roughly from 461 to 429 BC, is sometimes known as the "Age of Pericles", though the period thus denoted can include times as early as the Persian Wars, or as late as the next century.
Pericles promoted the arts and literature; it is principally through his efforts that Athens holds the reputation of being the educational and cultural center of the ancient Greek world. He started an ambitious project that generated most of the surviving structures on the Acropolis (including the Parthenon). This project beautified and protected the city, exhibited its glory, and gave work to the people. Pericles also fostered Athenian democracy to such an extent that critics call him a populist.