200 MGA – 1975

1. Overview

• Issuer / Issuing Bank: Government of Madagascar; issued by the Central Bank of Madagascar (Banky Foiben’i Madagasikara) under the Second Republic (1975–1992). (Numista)
• Period / Year: Issued in 1975, during Madagascar’s Second Republic. (Numista, Numista)
• Type: Standard circulation banknote. (Numista)
• Denomination & Currency: 1 000 Francs, equivalent to 200 Ariary (denoted 200 MGF). (Numista)
• Currency System: Franc (used from 1963 to 2004), dual‐denominated with Ariary during this period. (Numista, Wikipedia)
• Composition: Printed on paper. (Numista)
• Size & Shape: Rectangular, measuring 153 × 83 mm. (Numista)
• Demonetized: Yes — the banknote is no longer legal tender. (Numista)

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2. Design & Imagery

• Recto (Obverse): Features a man wearing a hat (center right), flowers (center left), and lemurs on left side. Inscribed with BANKY FOIBEN’I REPOBLIKA MALAGASY and ROAN-JATO ARIARY. (Numista)
• Verso (Reverse): Depicts baobab trees centrally, and an aloalo carving showing a herdsman and his zebu on the right. The right side also contains the denomination and legal text on a security‐style background. (Numista)

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3. Security Features

Numista does not explicitly list security features beyond design elements. However, similar banknotes of the era typically incorporated anti‐counterfeiting measures such as intricate background printing, fine line patterns, and watermarking. (No specific security features were documented for this issue.) (Numista)

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4. Production Details & Variants

• Printer: Printed by De La Rue (Thomas De La Rue & Co., London). (Numista, Numista)
• Known Print Runs & Variants (from Numista data):
  • 63 000 000 notes — most common variety (~89% frequency among collectors).
  • 650 000 “replacement” series (Series Z/1) — rare (~1.6%).
  • 1 000 specimen with black Banque Centrale stamp — collector rarity (~5%).
  • Specimen with red printer’s stamp — extremely rare (~0%). (Numista)

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5. Cultural & Historical Notes

• The 1975 issuance reflects the shift from the franc to the ariary system during political transformation—when the “Second Republic” changed the currency naming and bank design. The images (lemurs, baobabs, aloalo) emphasize Madagascar’s natural and cultural identity. (Wikipedia, Numista)
• As a demonetized collectible, it’s part of the rare historical issues, and certain specimen versions are notable for collectors. (Numista)

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Summary Table

Aspect	Details
Issuer	Central Bank of Madagascar (Second Republic)
Year	1975
Denomination	1 000 Francs = 200 Ariary
Composition	Paper
Size	153 × 83 mm, Rectangular
Obverse	Man with hat, flowers, lemurs
Reverse	Baobabs, aloalo with herdsman & zebu, legal text
Printer	De La Rue, London
Security Features	Likely fine printing, but not documented officially
Variants	Common, replacement, specimen (black/red stamps)
Demonetized	Yes
Cultural Notes	Strong Malagasy imagery, transitional currency era