Thomas De La Rue has printed Tongan currency since the kingdom's first banknotes in 1966, an arrangement that has continued with almost no interruption across successive monarchs. This note falls within the series issued under King Tupou VI, who acceded to the throne in March 2012 following the death of his brother George Tupou V — a succession that required updating the royal portrait across the entire note range.
The P#44 series retains the relatively modest security specification of watermark and thread, without the polymer substrate or optically variable features that many Pacific island issuers adopted around this period.
Thomas De La Rue has printed Tongan currency since the kingdom's first banknotes in 1966, an arrangement that has continued with almost no interruption across successive monarchs. This note falls within the series issued under King Tupou VI, who acceded to the throne in March 2012 following the death of his brother George Tupou V — a succession that required updating the royal portrait across the entire note range.
The P#44 series retains the relatively modest security specification of watermark and thread, without the polymer substrate or optically variable features that many Pacific island issuers adopted around this period.