1 Leu, National Bank of Moldova

Moldova introduced the leu on 29 November 1993, replacing the interim cupon that had carried the newly independent republic through the collapse of the Soviet rouble. The 1-leu note belongs to the standard series whose design was fixed in 1992 and first issued in 1994, and which the National Bank of Moldova has simply reprinted with fresh dates ever since — this copy bears the year 2013. Every denomination shares one obverse: a portrait of Ștefan cel Mare (Stephen the Great), voivode of Moldavia from 1457 to 1504, who held the principality against the Ottomans and Poland and became the enduring emblem of Moldovan nationhood.

The reverse of each value shows a different church or monastery. The 1 leu carries Căpriana Monastery, one of the oldest monastic foundations in Moldova, established in the first half of the 15th century and patronised by Stephen himself. The note is issued by the Banca Națională a Moldovei and signed by its GUVERNATOR; the governor through the 2013 issues was Dorin Drăguțanu. A watermark portrait of Stephen the Great secures the note.