Vladimir Geiger, POLITIČKA I IDEOLOŠKA POZADINA DIZAJNA I IKONOGRAFIJE JUGOSLOVENSKIH NOVČANICA 1919.-1929.

doi: 10.29362/2237.gei.67-106

Novac Kraljevstva odnosno Kraljevine SHS, 1919.-1929., kao, uostalom, i svaki drugi novac u prošlosti i danas, pruža mnoštvo simboličnih poruka na više razina, čijim iščitavanjem možemo razumjeti državnu, nacionalnu, političku i ideološku, te i gospodarsku i kulturnu usmjerenost jugoslavenske monarhije, kao i najvažnije mjene kroz koje je prolazila. Uvažavajući nedvojbene povijesne činjenice, pokušalo se razriješiti i pojasniti zašto su nastala pojedina likovna rješenja i ikonografske poruke (od prepoznatljivih heraldičkih obilježja i likova vladajuće dinastije Karađorđević i znamenitih osoba iz nacionalne povijesti do različitih simboličnih prikaza i alegorijskih likova) te kako se jugoslavenska monarhija prikazima i porukama na novcu predstavljala svijetu. Bilo je važno istražiti i kako su se takve dizajnerske i ikonografske poruke iščitavale u vlastitom narodu kojemu su ponajprije bile namijenjene.

Vladimir Geiger, THE POLITICAL AND IDEOLOGICAL BACKGROUND OF THE DESIGN AND THE ICONOGRAPHY OF YUGOSLAV BANKNOTES, 1919-1929

This paper reviews the design and the iconography of Yugoslav banknotes from the time of the issue of the first currency of the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes from 1919 to 1929, at which time the monarchy changed its name to the Kingdom of Yugoslavia in accordance with the proclaimed ideology of integral Yugoslavism. Because of the pronounced artistic (design, graphic) and iconographic possibilities, special attention was devoted to banknotes, the creators of which were, along with French designers and printmakers, notable Yugoslav (Croatian) fine artists. The currency of the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes, like, after all, every other currency of the past or the present, provide a variety of symbolic messages at various levels, the reading of which enables us to understand the statist, national, political and ideological, the economic and the cultural orientation as well as the most significant changes through which the Yugoslav monarchy passed during the first decade of its existence. Taking into consideration the undeniable historical facts, an attempt has been made to resolve and explain some of the artistic approaches, semantic and iconographic messages in a certain period of time (from recognizable heraldic characteristics and figures of the ruling Karađorđević dynasty and notable individuals in national history to various symbolic representations and allegorical characters) and to indicate how the Yugoslav monarchy presented itself to the world with depictions and messages on the currency, and at the same time to show how the design and iconographic messages were taken by the particular nations for which they were intended in the first place. The design and iconography of banknotes of the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes clearly show the national and statist nature of the South Slavic monarchy led by the Karađorđević dynasty, the foundation of which was Serbian history and the Serbian tradition as well as Christian inheritance. In the predominantly Serbian context, the depiction of the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes was stereotyped and prettified as the habitat of hardworking and contented peasants and artisans but was also presented as a powerful state well known for its martial history and with a continued government that ensured peace, and nurtured knowledge, economic advancement and general progress.