The 20 markkaa note with the portrait of Väinö Linna belongs to the last series of the Finnish markka — the 1986 design that stayed in circulation right up to the euro changeover. The twenty joined the series in 1993, and from 1997 it was issued with a hologram and the marking «Litt. A» on the front. This is the variety listed in the Pick catalogue as number 123.

Linna wrote the novel «The Unknown Soldier» (1954), which first caused an uproar and then became one of the most widely read books in Finland, as well as the trilogy «Under the North Star». The back is tied directly to his life: it shows the Tammerkoski rapids in Tampere lined with factory buildings, and the writer himself spent many years working at the Finlayson textile mills in that city.

A whole team worked on the series: the fronts were designed by the artist Torsten Ekström, the backs by the graphic artist Erik Bruun, and the portraits were painted by the artist Eeva Oivo. Markka notes ceased to be legal tender on 28 February 2002, and on 29 February 2012 the Bank of Finland stopped exchanging them for good.

In a Finnish markka collection the note fills the twenty-markka slot in its late variety with a hologram, and in a «writers on banknotes» set it takes the place of the author of «The Unknown Soldier». UNC condition means the note has never circulated: no folds, no wear, no soiling, even corners — just as it left the press.

Other paper money items from the same country or on the same theme are in the VPcoins catalogue.