Catalog
1 Pound - Edward VIII
| Issuer | Commonwealth Bank of Australia |
|---|---|
| Year | 1936 |
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| Size | 168 x 84 mm |
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| Obverse description | Portrait of King Edward VIII in uniform to the right within a guilloche border panel, with the Commonwealth of Australia arms as a central vignette at top. The legal tender text in italic script occupies the centre of the note, flanked by an oval underprint panel to the left bearing the denomination numeral '1'. Intricate guilloche underprint in pink and blue covers the note field, with '1' and 'ONE' repeated in the side panels. |
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| Obverse lettering | ONE 1 COMMONWEALTH OF AUSTRALIA This Note is legal tender for ONE POUND in the Commonwealth and in all Territories under the control of the Commonwealth 1 ONE |
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| Comments |
Edward VIII abdicated in December 1936 before any Australian notes bearing his name were formally released into circulation, which makes this issue an anomaly — authorized under one monarch, rendered obsolete almost immediately by his successor. The notes were printed and signed during his brief reign but distributed afterward, creating a legal and ceremonial awkwardness the Commonwealth Bank resolved simply by continuing distribution without recall.
The signature of H. J. Sheehan as Secretary and E. C. Riddle as Governor appears on this series. Riddle's tenure began in 1925 and his signature runs across multiple preceding issues, giving continuity even as the royal designation shifted beneath it.