1000 South Korean Won Banknote (1975 Issue)

1,000 Won (Issued 1975)

Issued during the presidency of Park Chung-hee, whose authoritarian Yushin constitution of 1972 had consolidated near-absolute executive power in South Korea, the 1975 one-thousand Won banknote belongs to a period of rapid industrialisation and deep political tension on the Korean Peninsula. Park’s government was simultaneously overseeing the economic miracle known as the “Miracle on the Han River” while suppressing political dissent with emergency decrees. The note’s issue date falls just months after the fall of Saigon in April 1975, a moment that sharply heightened security anxieties across the Republic of Korea. Against this charged backdrop, the Bank of Korea produced a note that paired national cultural heritage with confident, modern printing technology.

On the front, the dominant presence is the portrait of Yi I, the celebrated sixteenth-century Confucian scholar, philosopher, and statesman — known by his pen name Yulgok — rendered in a finely engraved intaglio style that captures the texture of his traditional joseon-era robes and the distinctive dark cylindrical gat hat he wears upon his head. His long white beard and composed expression are rendered with exceptional linework, conveying scholarly gravitas. The portrait is positioned to the right of centre against a pale ground, with a small red seal impression visible just below and to the left of the portrait, adding an authenticating flourish typical of Korean banknote design of this era. To the left of centre, a large circular guilloché rosette forms the primary decorative field, executed in concentric rings of fine geometric latticework in muted rose, blue, and cream tones. Overlaying this central medallion, the denomination is printed in bold Korean characters — 천 원 — in a deep burgundy-purple ink, with the issuing authority 한국은행 (Bank of Korea) inscribed in a smaller weight directly beneath. A delicate sprig of what appears to be a hibiscus flower — the mugunghwa, the national flower of South Korea — is engraved to the left, its petals rendered in soft grey-lavender tones against the note’s predominantly purple-mauve background. The serial number 다아라 0278133 appears twice, once in the upper left and once along the lower right, printed in a dark contrasting ink. The numeral 1000 appears in the upper right corner and again in the lower left, the latter rendered in a bold, shadow-relief style with a slightly different tonal depth. Faint guilloché underprint patterns extend across the entire face of the note, with a secondary rosette visible to the far right edge, partially visible behind the portrait. The paper carries a visible security thread embedded vertically, and the overall colour palette of the obverse is a warm lilac-purple graduating toward softer mauve tones across the field.

The reverse is dominated by a large, finely engraved central vignette depicting a traditional Korean architectural complex, identifiable as Ojukheon — the historic house in Gangneung associated with Yi I himself and his mother, the celebrated artist Shin Saimdang. The complex is rendered in exquisite detail, with multiple tiled pavilion rooftops, courtyard walls, mature pine and deciduous trees, and layered garden terracing visible across the composition. The engraving is executed in a rich grey-green tone with deep shadow definition that gives the buildings strong three-dimensional presence. To the left of the central vignette, an elaborate guilloché rosette in purple, blue, and rust-orange tones anchors the left panel, its concentric petal-form rings providing strong visual contrast to the architectural scene. The denomination 1000 appears in the lower left corner in bold purple numerals within a fine-lined border frame, while the text 1000 WON is printed in serif capitals along the upper portion of the note in dark ink. Below the central vignette, the issuing authority is clearly stated: THE BANK OF KOREA, in bold uppercase serif lettering. A further denomination numeral 1000 appears to the right, framed within a decorative panel with fine radiating line work in orange-red and purple. Smaller Korean text appears along the bottom right edge, likely containing the printer’s imprint. The overall reverse palette is a cool blue-purple with warm accent tones in the decorative panels.

Webuyallcurrency.com makes it easy to exchange old coins and banknotes — a 1975 one-thousand Won banknote from South Korea is accepted with other old or withdrawn South Korean Won banknotes and converted into cash in one go.

• Indicate the quantity of 1,000 Won Won banknotes you want to exchange
• Click the ‘Add to your account’ button
• Your online account now shows the exchange value

Turn forgotten South Korean Won banknotes into money: Webuyallcurrency.com lets you exchange foreign coins and notes — even withdrawn ones — as part of one clear transaction, no specialist knowledge required.

Other South Korean Won you can exchange: 0.1, 0.5, 1, 5, 10, 50, 100, 500, 2000, 5000.