100 Israeli Old Shekel Banknote (1978 To 1984 Issue)

100 Sheqalim Sheqel (Issued 1979)

Issued at the threshold of Israel’s monetary transition, the 100 Sheqalim note of 1979 occupies a precise and historically charged moment in the country’s financial history, serving as part of the first Sheqel series introduced under the Bank of Israel’s 1980 Sheqel Reform. A currency specialist examining this note would immediately recognise it as a transitional piece, rendered obsolete when the New Israeli Sheqel replaced the original Sheqel in 1985 following a period of acute hyperinflation. The portrait choice alone signals cultural ambition, with the note honouring a founding intellectual figure of the Zionist movement rather than a political or military leader. The engraving quality and warm tonal palette place this firmly within the aesthetic conventions of late 1970s Israeli banknote production.

On the front, the dominant feature is a finely engraved portrait of Ze’ev Jabotinsky, the prominent Revisionist Zionist leader, writer, and co-founder of the Jewish Legion, rendered in a detailed intaglio style that captures his characteristic round-framed spectacles, neat side-parted hair, and composed, forward-facing expression. The portrait occupies the right-hand portion of the note and is set against a warm ochre and terracotta background, with a lightly engraved architectural scene visible behind the figure, depicting what appears to be a stone archway and the walls of an ancient building, likely referencing Jerusalem’s historic landscape, accompanied by the suggestion of a palm tree to the right. The denomination numeral “100” appears prominently in dark reddish-brown in the upper left and upper right corners, balanced by the Hebrew text “מאה שקל” meaning one hundred sheqels, printed in a bold serif typeface in the upper centre of the note. The issuing authority is identified in Hebrew as “בנק ישראל” — Bank of Israel — in a clear, authoritative typeface running across the lower centre of the note. To the lower left, two lines of Hebrew text identify the signatories, with a cursive signature appearing above the printed titles of the Governor and the Chairman of the Advisory Council of the Bank of Israel. A small decorative red geometric motif, resembling a stylised menorah or ornamental emblem, appears in the lower left margin alongside the signature block. The date “ירושלים, 1979” — Jerusalem, 1979 — is printed in small text beneath the central inscription, confirming the place and year of issue. The overall colour scheme of the front is dominated by warm amber, ochre, and rust tones, with subtle guilloché patterning providing background texture across the face of the note.

The reverse presents a commanding and precisely engraved depiction of a massive stone fortification, identifiable as the Tower of David citadel in Jerusalem, rendered in rich terracotta and reddish-brown tones against a lightly patterned cream background. The stonework of the ancient walls is depicted with remarkable intaglio detail, showing individual stone courses and the arched gateway at the base of the tower, with a lone olive tree rendered to the right of the fortification, adding depth and a distinctly regional character to the composition. The denomination numeral “100” appears in the upper right corner and lower left corner of the reverse in a bold, dark serif typeface, consistent with the front presentation. The Bank of Israel’s name is printed in three languages across the note: “בנק ישראל” in Hebrew in the upper centre, “BANK OF ISRAEL” in English across the lower centre, and “بنك إسرائيل” in Arabic running vertically along the left margin, reflecting Israel’s multilingual official policy. The serial number 4853016990 is printed twice in dark numerals, appearing once in the upper left area and once along the right side of the note, providing standard identification. The background of the reverse carries a fine repetitive micropattern of the Hebrew text “בנק ישראל” tiled across the field in a pale, almost ghostly impression, functioning as an anti-counterfeiting security measure integrated into the paper itself.

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Other Israeli Old Sheqalim you can exchange: 1, 5, 10, 50, 500, 1000, 5000, 10000.