BANKNOTES OF ESTONIA
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Date	Pick#	Denomination	Observations	Obverse	Reverse
1991	74	100 Krooni
Obverse Design: Lydia Koidula (1843-1886) Estonian poetess and playwright Reverse Design: A view of the north Estonian limestone shore
1994	76	5 Krooni
Obverse Design: Paul Keres (1916-1975) A famous Estonian chess player Reverse Design: Order stronghold, the Narva River and the fortified stronghold of Jaanilinn
1994	77	10 Krooni
Obverse Design: Jakob Hurt (1839-1907) Estonian folklorist, theologist, linguist and prominent social figure Reverse Design: A view of the Tamme-Lauri oak at Urvaste
1994	78	50 Krooni
Obverse Design: Rudolf Tobias (1873-1918), a famous Estonian composer Reverse Design: Estonia Opera House in Tallinn
2002	84	25 Krooni
Obverse Design: Anton Hansen Tammsaare (1878-1940) Estonian writer of classical literature Reverse Design: A view of Vargamäe

From 1944 until 1992  Estonia used Soviet banknotes and coins.
Click here to see the notes of the former Soviet Union

The history of the currency of Estonia
Estonia was a part of the Russian empire until it declared its independence in 1918 and remained an independent nation until the second world war when it opted to be admitted to the Soviet Union as a Soviet Socialist Republic in 1944. For a brief time in 1918 Germans occupied parts of Estonia and German marks became the currency of the land. After the Germans left in November 1918, Estonia was again independent and established its own currency, the Estonian marka. The marka was established at par with the German mark and was equal to two Russian rubles.  The marka did not suffer quite the same inflation that Germany did but in 1924 the marka was replaced by the kroon as the unit of account, at a rate of 100 marka to one kroon. In 1928 the Bank of Estonia began issuing notes and coins denominated in kroon, prior to this the Estonian government held note and coin issuing responsibilities. The kroon was divided into 100 penni.  When Estonia joined the Soviet Union it ceased issuing its own national currency and opted to use Soviet coins and banknotes.  Estonian used the ruble up until the breakup of the Soviet Union, in 1992 Estonia declared its independence and once again established a central bank and its own currency the Kroon. The new Kroon was introduced at a rate of ten Soviet rubles for one kroon.  Initially, the value of the kroon was linked to that of the German mark at a rate of eight krooni to one mark.  Since Estonia’s independence in 1992 the value their national currency has remained stable. Estonia joined the European Union in 2004 and from what I understand they intend on adopting the euro in the next two or three years. 

The Estonian kroon’s ISO 4217 code is EEK, the kroon is divided into 100 senti and the plural of kroon is krooni.  Currently coins in circulation are in denominations of 5, 10, 20 and 50 senti and 1 Kroon. Eesti Pank, Estonia’s central bank has also issued 5 Krooni commemorative coins, although they are never seen in circulation, it also ceased issuing the 5 senti coin. Banknotes are issued in 1, 2, 5, 10, 25, 50, 100 and 500 Krooni denominations.

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Page created:     14 June 2006
Last Update:      22 June 2006

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