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1 Pound
| Issuer | National Bank of Egypt |
|---|---|
| Year | 1899 |
| Type | Standard circulation banknote |
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|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | NATIONAL BANK OF EGYPT ONE EGYPTIAN POUND ISSUED UNDER DECREE DATED 25TH JUNE 1898 I Promise to Pay the Bearer on Demand the sum of ONE EGYPTIAN POUND for the NATIONAL BANK OF EGYPT Cairo 5th January 1899 GOVERNOR جنيه البنك الاهلي المصري |
| Reverse description | Printed in brown on plain paper, the reverse is dominated by an elaborate guilloche framework of interlocking oval and circular lathe-work patterns surrounding a central cartouche. Within the cartouche, the bank's name in Arabic script — البنك الاهلي المصري — is inscribed in bold calligraphy, flanked by the denomination numeral '1' and the abbreviation 'S.E.' (Système Egyptien) to the left. The overall design relies entirely on ornate engine-turned geometry without pictorial vignettes. |
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| Comments |
The National Bank of Egypt was established by charter in 1898 — a private institution, majority-financed by foreign capital, that was handed the right of note issue almost immediately. This note, from the bank's earliest series, predates the formal entrenchment of the gold standard in Egypt and was issued into a monetary environment still transitioning away from the chaotic overlapping currencies of the late Khedival period.
Bradbury Wilkinson produced the plates in London, which was entirely routine for colonial-adjacent banking institutions of the period. The dual signatures of Palmer and Rowlatt place this among the earliest signed issues — Rowlatt served as secretary, Palmer as the bank's first governor.