LAUSR

ABSTRACT In times of geopolitical shifts, banknotes as symbolic objects are still playing a central role in the constitution and consolidation of nationhood. Using Israeli banknotes – which are means of banal nationalism and every-day nationalism – as a case study we wish to illuminate the role of the hegemonic institution of national banknotes in creating a selective tradition that organizes symbols related to flora as signifying a certain ‘territorial identity’. We used the qualitative methodology and analyzed relevant minutes of proceedings and correspondence of the Bank of Israel’s Banknotes and Coinage Planning Committee in Jerusalem, from 1955 to 2007.