Catalog
1 Pound
| Issuer | General Treasury of Ceylon |
|---|---|
| Year | 1850 |
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| Value | 1 Pound |
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| Obverse description | The obverse is laid out in a horizontal format with a central allegorical vignette of a seated female figure accompanied by a lion, rendered in fine intaglio engraving, flanked by two oval guilloche medallions bearing the denomination numeral £1. The heading CEYLON appears in bold letterpress across the upper portion, with trilingual inscriptions in Sinhala and Tamil running along the top and bottom borders. The bearer text, printed in a script-style typeface across the centre, reads that the bearer is entitled to receive on demand ONE POUND at the General Treasury in the Currency of this Island at Colombo, with ONE POUND / ஒரு பவுன் repeated in a lower panel. |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | CEYLON Nº 37086 The Bearer hereof is entitled to receive on demand ONE POUND at the GENERAL TREASURY in the Currency of this Island at Colombo ONE POUND ஒரு பவுன் ரூபாவிகை 1st Entry |
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| Comments |
The General Treasury of Ceylon issuing its own pound notes in 1850 places this squarely within a transitional moment for the island's monetary administration — the Oriental Bank Corporation had been operating in Ceylon since 1842, and private bank notes circulated alongside government paper throughout this period. A government treasury issuing directly, rather than through chartered banks, was not the default arrangement, and Pick 3 reflects an attempt at tighter fiscal control over paper currency on the island.
Local printing in Colombo at this date is notable. Most colonial paper of this period was printed in London; a Colombo-produced note from 1850 would have relied on limited local engraving resources, which often shows in the plate work.