On 27 November 1895, a year before his death, Alfred Nobel signed the famous will which would implement some of the goals to which he had devoted so much of his life. Nobel stipulated in his will that most of his estate, more than SEK 31 million (today approximately SEK 1,794 million) should be converted into a fund and invested in “safe securities.”

The income from the investments was to be “distributed annually in the form of prizes to those who during the preceding year have conferred the greatest benefit to humankind.” The table below shows the Nobel Prize amount in Swedish kronor (SEK) through the years, the monetary value per December 2018 in Swedish kronor (SEK) and the value in % compared to the original amount in 1901. The Nobel Prize amount for 2019 was set at Swedish kronor (SEK) 9.0 million per full Nobel Prize. See a table with all the prize amounts since 1901 (pdf).