Catalog
| Issuer | Government of the Straits Settlements |
|---|---|
| Year | 1931-1935 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | Log in to see details |
| Currency | Log in to see details |
| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Size | Log in to see details |
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| Printer | Log in to see details |
| Designer(s) | Log in to see details |
| Engraver(s) | Log in to see details |
| In circulation to | Log in to see details |
| Reference(s) | P#18 |
| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | THE GOVERNMENT OF THE STRAITS SETTLEMENTS PROMISES TO PAY THE BEARER ON DEMAND AT SINGAPORE TEN DOLLARS LOCAL CURRENCY FOR VALUE RECEIVED FOR THE CURRENCY COMMISSIONERS BRADBURY, WILKINSON & CO Ld ENGRAVERS, NEW MALDEN, SURREY, ENGLAND 票銀庫國叻嶼坡 |
| Reverse description | Log in to see details |
| Reverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Signature(s) | Log in to see details |
| Protection type | Watermark |
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| Variants | Log in to see details |
| Comments |
The Straits Settlements — Penang, Malacca, and Singapore — operated as a Crown Colony under direct British administration, and its currency was managed accordingly through London. Bradbury, Wilkinson produced this series using their characteristic recess-engraved printing, which gives the ink a tactile relief detectable even on heavily circulated examples. The watermark, typically the royal cypher or a crown device, was the primary security measure — modest by later standards but considered adequate for a colonial currency that circulated in a relatively small and commercially concentrated territory.
The 1931 start date places the first issues squarely in the aftermath of Britain's suspension of the gold standard in September of that year, a decision that directly affected the Straits dollar's exchange peg.