The Government of India's first foray into 10 Rupee notes came directly out of the pressures of the First World War. The colonial administration needed to ease the strain on silver coinage — wartime demand for metal had made coin shortages acute — and so paper currency was pushed into denominations that had previously been left to coin. The Currency Notes Ordinance of 1917 underpinned the issue.
Two controller signatures appear across the life of this type: McWatters and Denning, reflecting the note's unusually long print run stretching into 1930. Collectors distinguish the two signature varieties, with McWatters examples generally harder to find in any decent state of preservation given their earlier circulation exposure.
The Government of India's first foray into 10 Rupee notes came directly out of the pressures of the First World War. The colonial administration needed to ease the strain on silver coinage — wartime demand for metal had made coin shortages acute — and so paper currency was pushed into denominations that had previously been left to coin. The Currency Notes Ordinance of 1917 underpinned the issue.
Two controller signatures appear across the life of this type: McWatters and Denning, reflecting the note's unusually long print run stretching into 1930. Collectors distinguish the two signature varieties, with McWatters examples generally harder to find in any decent state of preservation given their earlier circulation exposure.