At the top of the note, the bank arms are flanked by the flags of Great Britain and Greece. The design is accompanied by bilingual inscriptions in both Greek and English.
The Ionian Bank was chartered in London in 1839 specifically to serve the Ionian Islands, then a British protectorate. Its early notes — of which this 1840 Pound is among the first issued — circulated in a monetary environment where the Maria Theresa Thaler and various Venetian-era silver coins still commanded more local trust than any paper instrument.
The Cephalonia designation matters: branches issued independently, making place-specific examples genuinely distinct from Corfu or Zante counterparts of the same series. P#S111 is among the rarest branch designations to surface in the market.
The Ionian Bank was chartered in London in 1839 specifically to serve the Ionian Islands, then a British protectorate. Its early notes — of which this 1840 Pound is among the first issued — circulated in a monetary environment where the Maria Theresa Thaler and various Venetian-era silver coins still commanded more local trust than any paper instrument.
The Cephalonia designation matters: branches issued independently, making place-specific examples genuinely distinct from Corfu or Zante counterparts of the same series. P#S111 is among the rarest branch designations to surface in the market.