North Korea rare banknotes and collectible paper money

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North Korea rare banknotes
and collectible paper money

FIND NORTH KOREA BANKNOTES FOR SALE

North Korea’s banknotes first came in 1947, after a hard-to-find series of Soviet-produced won banknotes in 1945 proved temporary. One hundred chon are equal to 1 won; most DPRK notes are denominated in the larger unit of won.

1947 series: Korean and Japanese

The first North Korean banknotes, the 1947 notes issued by the North Korean Central Bank, were valued as low as 15 chon; there were also 20 and 50 chon notes, plus 1, 5, 10, and 100 won notes. These 1947 notes included some Korean script, numbers and date in Latin script, and much Japanese — the banking authority is rendered as 北朝鮮中央銀行券 (pronounced kita chōsen chūō ginkō ken).

1959 series: DPRK

When the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea issued its first notes in 1959, new notes excluded the Japanese script that had appeared earlier, and the six notes (50 chon, and 1, 5, 10, 50, and 100 won) can be difficult to identify for collectors who can’t read the Korean script without a catalog or other reference material. These notes feature the name of the country in Korean: 조선민주주의인민공화국 (pronounced chosŏn minjujuŭi inmin konghwaguk).

United States rare banknotes and collectible paper money

1978 series: socialist vs. non-socialist varieties

In 1978, North Korea issued a famous series of notes whose 1, 5, and 10 won pieces had variations intended to separate people into socialist or capitalist: one color was for North Korean people, another color was for international visitors from Communist countries, and a third color was for visitors from non-Communist countries. As with North Korean coins, some of which used a similar system, there is not much difference in marketplace value between these notes, and they can be collected however you wish. The 100 won note from this 1978 series was the first to feature an image of the leader Kim Il-Sung, and did not follow the color-coding system.

1988, 1992, and 2002 series

North Korea’s 1988 banknotes were again issued in socialist/non-socialist visitors, this time with differing designs, not just differing colors. The notes were in 1, 5, 10, and 50 chon, and 1, 5, 10, and 50 won. Further series followed in 1992 and 2002, in ever-higher denominations as inflation gripped the country.

See also: North Korea Pin and Badge: “Dear Leader” Collectibles

2009 series: currency reform

In an effort to combat the increasingly desperate economy, North Korea reformed its currency in 2009, issuing new banknotes in 5, 10, 50, 100, 200, 500, 1000, 2000, and 5000 won values. Although this proved to be ineffective at fixing the country’s economic problems, it did give banknote collectors a new focus for their collections.

Other North Korean banknotes

In addition to the regular-issue banknotes, North Korea paper money pieces are available as special limited commemorative notes and as specimens (the latter can be identified by the prominent characters 견본). The marketplace features an interesting array of different North Korean banknotes for sale at any one time from a wide swath of vendors — check the current listings here. 

North Korea banknotes for sale

Currently showing our favorite 189 listings from eBay vendors. Click for shipping details and money-back guarantee info. North Korea banknotes listings are chosen using MegaMinistore's original custom technology. We show you only the latest and best listings from safe, trusted vendors. Sales are updated and refreshed every day.

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Showing 1 - 10 of 189

Korea Paper Money 1953-62 Bank of Korea One Hwan

Seller: anthonysnj-stampsandcoins ★★★★★★★★★★ 99.7% (116,217 ratings)
Location: United States

50% OFF
$180.00
$90.00 or best offer

Limited-time deal. Buy It Now Price

Lots 52 Pcs Different World Banknotes Paper Money Foreign UNC Collection Gift

Seller: eb-bear ★★★★★★★★★★ 99.5% (10,243 ratings)
Location: China

10% OFF
$20.00
$18.00 or best offer

Limited-time deal. Buy It Now Price

KOREA 1 YEN 1945 PICK 38A SERIES 1 ,​ Block :1 Banknote

Seller: numisuk ★★★★★★★★★★ 100% (14 ratings)
Location: Turkey

$25.42 or best offer

Buy It Now Price

Reproduction Rare Korea Bank of Chosen 1945 1000 Yen Banknote china asia

Seller: ldoran-123 ★★★★★★★★★★ 97.2% (2,279 ratings)
Location: Ireland

$12.70

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1962 - Bank Of KOREA - 1 (One) Korean Won Banknote,​ Wor (P-30a),​ No. G 8887552

Seller: the-counter ★★★★★★★★★★ 99.8% (5,056 ratings)
Location: United Kingdom

$33.03 or best offer

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Reproduction Rare Korea Bank of Chosen One Yen Gold 1915 Banknote Antique Scarce

Seller: ldoran-123 ★★★★★★★★★★ 97.2% (2,279 ratings)
Location: Ireland

$12.70

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Bank of Korea 1000 Won Banknote (569)

Seller: aain_89 ★★★★★★★★★★ 98.2% (70 ratings)
Location: United Kingdom

$12.71 or best offer

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Korea 1 Yen 1945 P-38 VF #0157

Seller: thenotenook ★★★★★★★★★★ 100% (641 ratings)
Location: United States

$14.95 or best offer

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Antique Paper Bills,​ Japan Yen,​ Korea Won

Seller: monnj57 ★★★★★★★★★★ 99.6% (3,676 ratings)
Location: United States

$50.00 or best offer

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1962 Korea 10 Jeon Note Crisp Gem CU CHN

Seller: chertan ★★★★★★★★★★ 99.9% (9,768 ratings)
Location: United States

$9.99

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1 - 10 of 189

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