Catalog
10 Pounds
| Issuer | Port Elizabeth Bank |
|---|---|
| Year | 1871 |
| Type | Standard circulation banknote |
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| Obverse description | The obverse is executed in an engraved letterpress style on plain white paper, with an elaborate calligraphic script heading reading "Port Elizabeth Bank" at the top center, flanked by oval denomination cartouches bearing "£10" at both upper corners. A central intaglio vignette depicts a standing classical female figure — emblematic of the Cape of Good Hope — beside a ship at anchor, framed by scrollwork; the inscriptions "CAPE OF" and "GOOD HOPE." appear to either side. The lower portion carries the promise-to-pay text in copperplate script, with "TEN POUNDS" set in a boldface rectangular panel at lower left and the manuscript completion lines for date, place, and authorization by the Directors and Trustees left blank. |
|---|---|
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| Reverse description | The reverse is unprinted, consisting of plain cream-white cotton paper with no engraved or typeset design elements; faint manuscript endorsement traces are visible across the surface, consistent with typical usage of early Cape colonial bearer notes. |
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| Comments |
The Port Elizabeth Bank was one of several short-lived Cape Colony commercial banks that collapsed in the financial crisis of the 1880s, but this 1871 note predates that disaster by over a decade. William Brown of London produced notes for numerous colonial issuers during this period — the engraving work was shipped out and the notes returned for local signature and issue, a logistical arrangement that left most examples with at least two handwritten signatures across the face.
At the £10 denomination, circulation was limited almost entirely to commercial transactions. Surviving examples are rare; the bank's failure and subsequent receivership meant most remaining stock was surrendered or destroyed.