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10 Rupees
| Issuer | Oriental Bank Corporation, Badulla |
|---|---|
| Year | 1881-1884 |
| Type | Pattern or trial banknote |
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| Obverse description | Black and red intaglio-printed note with elaborate guilloche borders. The centre carries a printed promise-to-pay text in English reading 'TEN RUPEES', surmounted by the bank title 'THE ORIENTAL BANK CORPORATION INCORPORATED BY ROYAL CHARTER' and a Royal Arms vignette; the branch designation 'BADULLA' appears at top and 'CEYLON' at the foot. Two oval vignettes flank the central text panel: at left, a seated classical female allegory upon a throne, and at right, a standing female figure holding flowers, with the denomination numeral '10' repeated in each corner and the word 'TEN' at the lateral borders; Sinhalese and Tamil script inscriptions appear between the vignettes. |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | THE ORIENTAL BANK CORPORATION INCORPORATED BY ROYAL CHARTER BADULLA CEYLON TEN RUPEES TEN 10 Promise to pay the Bearer on demand at their Branch here or at their Bank in Colombo Ten Rupees Value received Entr. Recount. Agent. |
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| Comments |
The Oriental Bank Corporation collapsed in May 1884 — one of the most spectacular bank failures in British colonial history. Overexposed across India, Ceylon, and the Far East, the OBC went into liquidation with liabilities that dwarfed its reserves, leaving note holders across multiple territories scrambling for redemption. Notes issued from the Badulla branch in Ceylon's hill country, serving the tea and coffee planting districts, would have circulated among estate managers, merchants, and suppliers rather than passing through any major commercial center.
The 1881–1884 date window means any surviving example from this branch was issued in the bank's dying years. Badulla branch material is scarcer than Colombo issues.