Catalog
1/2 Gulden West-Indische Bank
| Issuer | West-Indische Bank |
|---|---|
| Year | 1829 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | Log in to see details |
| Currency | Log in to see details |
| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Printer | Log in to see details |
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| Engraver(s) | Log in to see details |
| In circulation to | Log in to see details |
| Reference(s) | P#10 |
| Obverse description | Uniface letterpress note printed in brown and black, with a decorative border composed of musical notation designed by J.M. Fleischman. The central text block carries the bank name, denomination, and redemption clause in Dutch, with the date 1829 and the fractional value 1/2 positioned within the typeset layout. Signature varieties are known for this issue. |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Reverse description | The reverse is unprinted, consistent with the uniface nature of this issue. The plain paper surface shows age-related discolouration and fold marks typical of circulated examples, with a single handwritten signature visible at lower left. |
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| Comments |
The West-Indische Bank was established in 1828 by royal decree to stabilize currency circulation across the Dutch Caribbean colonies, replacing a chaotic mix of foreign coin and local scrip. This note would have been among the earliest issued under that mandate. Enschedé in Haarlem had been the Dutch state's preferred security printer for generations, and their involvement here reflects Amsterdam's insistence on metropolitan control over colonial monetary instruments even at small denominations.
Half-gulden notes were unusual — low enough in value that coin should have sufficed, which suggests acute small-change shortages in the colonies at the time of issue.