Currency of Estonia 2 krooni banknote 2007
Bank of Estonia - Eesti Pank
Obverse: The front side of the 2-kroon banknote displays KARL ERNST von BAER (1792–1876) – a Baltic-German naturalist, anthropologist and the founder of descriptive and comparative embryology. He was born in Estonia and later worked in Konigsberg, St. Petersburg and Tartu. Baer was the founder and first president of the Russian Geographical Society. In 1826, Baer discovered the mammalian (incl. human) ovum.
Reverse: The back side of the 2-kroon banknote features the main building of the University of Tartu. The building was constructed between 1804 and 1809 on the foundation of Maarja Church according to the design of the architect Johann Wilhelm Krause. It was ceremonially opened in 1809. The three-storey building is designed in the high-classicistic style and it is set on a raised terrace as was appropriate for a prominent building of the era. The six-pillared portico of the main façade has become the symbol of higher education in Estonia.
As the adoption of the euro was postponed and the stock of 2-kroon notes was running low, a second series of 2-kroon notes was printed in Canada in 2006 by the German printing house Giesecke & Devrient GmbH. The new notes were put into circulation in January 2007. The design, colours and basic security features of the new series are the same as on the 1992 notes, only some more up-to-date security elements were added.
The watermark featuring the Tall Hermann Tower was replaced by a watermark presenting the portrait of Karl Ernst von Baer. Instead of a transparent light security thread a modern, dark security thread with a transparent repeating text “2EEK EESTI PANK” was put into use. The new security thread fluoresces blue under UV light. A new security element, a latent denomination “2”, was applied. It is located on the front side of the note in the middle of the vignette. The front side also bears tactile intaglio-printed elements: the text “EESTI PANK” at the top edge and the denomination “2” in the middle of the note as well as to the left of the portrait. The banknote’s paper has security fibres that fluoresce green under UV light.
In 2007, an additional series of 2-kroon banknotes was printed. The design, colours and security features remained the same as on the 2006 notes, only the year is different. The new banknotes were put into circulation in 2009.
Estonian kroon banknotes
Bank of Estonia - Eesti Pank