Catalog
1 Pound
| Issuer | Commonwealth of Australia |
|---|---|
| Year | 1913-1918 |
| Type | Standard circulation banknote |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
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| Reverse lettering | 1 £1 1 |
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| Variants | P#4a - signature: Collins & Allen red serial # P#4b(1) - signature: Collins & Allen blue serial # serial # prefix: Q, R, S, T P#4b(2) - signature: Collins & Allen large black serial # serial # prefix: T P#4b(3) - signature: Collins & Allen large black serial # serial # suffix: A-H, J-L & P-T P#4b(4) - signature: Collins & Allen large black serial # serial # prefix A and suffix B-H & J-M P#4d - signature: Cerutty & Collins |
| Comments |
Australia's first federally issued paper currency came into existence under the Australian Notes Act of 1910, but notes weren't actually released into circulation until 1913 — the three-year gap reflecting the political friction involved in wresting note-issuing authority away from the private trading banks. The Commonwealth Bank had only been established in 1911, and the infrastructure for a national currency had to be built essentially from scratch.
The proliferation of signature and serial combinations under P#4 is not accidental. The 1913–1918 window covers the chaotic early years of the Federal Treasury's note issue, with T.S. Harrison's operation still finding its footing. Prefix and suffix variations, along with the shift from red to blue to large black serials, allow specialists to sequence production runs with reasonable precision — the large black suffix series in particular suggests a significant volume expansion, likely tied to wartime demand from 1915 onward.