2 Rixdollars

The Rixdollar was a Dutch colonial currency inherited by the British when they took formal possession of Ceylon from the Batavian Republic in 1796. By 1806, the colonial administration was still issuing notes denominated in the old Dutch unit — a pragmatic concession to a population uninterested in another monetary transition. The British would eventually demonetize the Rixdollar in 1828, fixing it at 1s 6d sterling for redemption purposes, a rate widely considered unfavorable to local holders.

Production at the Government Press in Colombo meant limited technical resources and no access to the security printing infrastructure available in London. These early Ceylon issues are among the more primitively executed colonial notes of the period, and genuine examples from 1806 are extremely rare.