Romfilatelia, the company specialized in editing and trading Romanian postage stamps introduces into circulation the stamp issue 140 years since the establishment of the Modern Romanian Monetary System. During the first half of the 19th century, on the territory of present day Romania, currency flow was made up of a large variety of coins, out of which the most well known were the French napoleon, the pound sterling, the Austrian ducat, the Ottoman lira, along with other different Turkish, Austrian, and Russian coins. The presence of such a large number of coins - more than 80 - on the territory of Moldavia and the Romanian Country in the middle of the 19th century has brought about projects for the development of a new integrated national monetary system.
The first attempts to set the foundation of a national monetary system were brought about by the ruler Alexandru Ioan Cuza. Cuza’s efforts finally showed up during the last year of his reign.
Although initially, through the acknowledgement of the new ruler Carol I, the Turkish government would neither allow him currency issuance nor the decoration award, as witnessed by the letter dated October 1866, addressed to the Romanian Government and bearing the signature of the Great Vizier in which the Sublime Porte reconsiders the currency issue allowing Principalities to issue their own currency on condition that it bears the imprint of the Ottoman Empire (the half moon or the stars half moon). One month later, by means of a new letter, the Sublime Porte would give up the claim for the bronze divisionary coin only. Taking advantage of the accomplishment, the Bratianu government would rephrase Cuza’s monetary law in a new monetary bill submitting it to the Parliament’s approval.
Accordingly, after 8 years from the Principalities’ Union in 1859, on April 22, 1867, the Law for the establishment of a national monetary system was finally passed. Taking over the bimetallist monetary system of the Latin Union (convention concluded in 1865 between France, Belgium, Switzerland and Italy), the law made provisions on the issuance of the gold coins (of 20, 10, and 5 lei), silver (2 lei, 1 leu, and 50 bani) and bronze (10, 5, 2 and 1 ban). The law also stipulated that, out of financial reasons, only the bronze coins were to be issued at that time and they were indeed immediately issued by the Watt & Co and Heaton in Birmingham (England) mints.
Tempering, for the moment, gold and silver coins showing Turkish suzerainty marks issuance, Bratianu had a double goal in mind: the set up of a national mint, that was to be accomplished in 1870, and issuance of coins showing the effigy of the ruler - mark of state sovereignty. In 1868 the first gold coin was issued (the 20 lei coin), while in 1870 the first silver coin sees the light of the day. Because of monetary-induced deficits having taken place during previous years, in 1877, the first banknotes were issued, the so called mortgage money coins that had a mandatory exchange rate with all public cashiers. Paper money with the face value of 5, 10, 20, 50, 100 and 500 lei were issued. Mortgage money was, in time, until 1890, withdrawn from the market and they were replaced with bank-issued money. Although, as time went by, the structure of the monetary system has suffered numerous modifications, the “leu” has, up to the present day, remained the national currency of Romania.
The stamp with face value of Lei 3.90 exhibits the obverse and the reverse of the first 1 Ban coin (bronze), issued in 1867, by the Heaton Birmingham Mint (England).
The stamp of the perforated souvenir sheet with a face value of Lei 5.60 is perforated on the round outline and exhibits the reverse of the 1 Leu coin (silver), issued in 1870, by the State Mint (Bucharest). Reproduced together with this one is the obverse of the coin on a drawing - the background of the sheet displaying elements of the first Romanian coin (5 Lei), issued by the Ministry of Finance in 1877, and printed in the workshops of the Bank of France in Paris. The same background envisages some other bronze coins issued in 1867 together with the silver coin of 50 bani issued in 1873.
