10000 Francs / 2000 Ariary

Thomas De La Rue printed this high-denomination note across a six-year issue window, an unusually long run for a single signature series that resulted in at least four distinct signature combinations appearing on P#74 — a detail that matters more to variety collectors than the catalog number suggests. Madagascar's monetary system had long used the dual denomination format, officially quoting values in both francs and ariary (with ariary equal to five francs), a legacy of the 1961 monetary reform that outlasted the CFA franc relationship by decades.

Notes from the early part of the run are meaningfully scarcer in high grade due to active commercial use in Antananarivo's trading economy during a period of significant currency pressure.