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10 Dollars HSBC
| Issuer | Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation |
|---|---|
| Year | 1913-1923 |
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| Currency | Log in to see details |
| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Printer | Waterlow & Sons Limited, United Kingdom (1810-1961) |
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|---|---|
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| Reverse description | The original HSBC head-office building rendered in a central vignette, enclosed within an elaborate border of lathe-work guilloche ornament carrying the bank name and denomination lettering in English and Chinese. |
| Reverse lettering | THE HONGKONG & SHANGHAI BANKING CORPORATION. TEN DOLLARS |
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| Comments |
Waterlow & Sons held the HSBC printing contract for this series through a period when the bank was operating under considerable pressure — the First World War disrupted trade finance across Asia, and HSBC's Hong Kong dollar notes were circulating not just locally but across treaty ports and British concessions from Shanghai to Weihaiwei. A ten-dollar note was serious money in this period; roughly equivalent to a month's wages for many clerical workers in the colony.
The Pick 167 series is notable for spanning a full decade of issue without a major redesign, which was unusual given how frequently colonial currency arrangements were renegotiated in this period. Date range collectors should note that pre-war and post-war printings share the same plate design despite the economic gulf between the two periods.