Catalog
See full images - free registration
Continue with Google - no registration!
or register with email
Why register? Just to keep bots out of our catalog. Your email stays private - we will never share it or send you anything uninvited. We guarantee you that!
1000 Francs Dakar
| Issuer | Banque de l'Afrique Occidentale |
|---|---|
| Year | 1924 |
| 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 |
| Shape | Log in to see details |
| Printer | Log in to see details |
| Designer(s) | Obverse: Henri Jules Ferdinand Bellery-Desfontaines Reverse: Georges Duval |
| Engraver(s) | Log in to see details |
| In circulation to | Log in to see details |
| Reference(s) | Log in to see details |
| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | BANQUE DE L'AFRIQUE OCCIDENTALE Mille Francs PAYABLES EN ESPÈCES, A VUE, AU PORTEUR DAKAR Le Président L'Administrateur-Directeur Bellery Desfontaines del. ERNEST ET FREDERIC FLORIAN SC. |
| Reverse description | Uniform orange letterpress design by Georges Duval, composed entirely of geometric and arabesque ornamental panels arranged in a symmetrical lattice framework with intricate interlaced borders at all four corners. A blank hexagonal reserve panel occupies the lower centre, flanked by two large panels of Arabic script text giving the note's value and payment conditions. A header panel at top carries the bank's name in Arabic calligraphy. |
| Reverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Signature(s) | Log in to see details |
| Protection type | Log in to see details |
| Protection description | Log in to see details |
| Variants | Log in to see details |
| Comments |
The Banque de l'Afrique Occidentale was the sole issuing authority across French West Africa from 1901, operating under a concession that tied colonial monetary policy directly to a Paris-based private institution. This 1000 Franc note, payable at Dakar, was among the highest denominations in circulation and would have moved primarily between traders and colonial administrators rather than through ordinary retail commerce — the purchasing power was simply too great for most local transactions.
Bellery-Desfontaines was primarily a poster and decorative arts illustrator, an unusual choice for banknote design work. The engraving fell to the Florian brothers, Frédéric and Ernest-Théophile, both associated with the Banque de France's intaglio workshop in Paris.