Catalog
1 Pound Derby Bank
| Issuer | Bellairs, Sons & Co. (Derby Bank) |
|---|---|
| Year | 1813 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | 1 Pound |
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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 |
| Reverse description | The reverse carries a central horizontal guilloche vignette in blue-green ink, formed by interlaced latticework with an oval cartouche at its centre enclosing an ornate monogram, flanked by foliate scroll terminals. A large circular inked cancellation stamp reading IN RE BELLAIRS SONS & CO. EXETER is applied over the right portion of the note, indicating the note was formally cancelled, likely in the context of the firm's insolvency proceedings. |
| Reverse lettering | IN RE BELLAIRS SONS & CO. EXETER |
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| Comments |
Bellairs, Sons & Co. operated the Derby Bank from premises on Iron Gate, one of several provincial English banks that issued their own notes under the country bank system that flourished before the Bank Charter Act of 1844 gradually killed it off. The firm was typical of the period in that it backed its notes on reputation and local commercial relationships rather than any formal reserve requirement — a fragile arrangement that left noteholders exposed whenever a bank stopped payment, which happened with alarming frequency across the English Midlands during the post-Napoleonic contraction.
Whether Bellairs survived that contraction or folded before it is the genuinely useful question here. Surviving examples from small Derby issuers are rare simply because the notes were redeemed and destroyed when solvent, or became worthless when they weren't.