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20 Dollars (4 Pounds 3 Shillings 4 Pence)
| Issuer | Royal Bank of Canada |
|---|---|
| Year | 1920 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | 20 Dollars |
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| Obverse description | Dark green and black note with an elaborate guilloche border frame. A central intaglio vignette depicts a horse-drawn wagon loaded with sugar cane being driven through a plantation scene, flanked by ornate scrollwork panels. The upper portion carries the issuer's title in large serif lettering, with the place of issue 'AT BRIDGETOWN' and 'BARBADOS' on either side; denomination panels in the upper corners read '20 BARBADOS DOLLARS THE EQUIVALENT OF £4·3·4'; the date 'January 2nd 1920' and handwritten place appear at lower left, with 'IN BARBADOS CURRENCY' and 'REDEEMABLE ONLY IN BARBADOS' inscribed across the lower register beneath a bold 'TWENTY' underprint. |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Reverse description | Printed entirely in blue, the reverse is dominated by a large central Royal Arms vignette with lion and unicorn supporters on either side of a quartered shield beneath a crown, with the motto ribbons 'DIEU ET MON DROIT' below. The denomination 'TWENTY BARBADOS DOLLARS THE EQUIVALENT OF £4-3-4' is repeated in bold lettering on both the left and right flanks within ornate guilloche panels, and the issuer's name appears in a curved cartouche at the foot of the design. |
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| Comments |
The Royal Bank of Canada had only recently relocated its head office from Halifax to Montreal when this series was issued, and the dual denomination — dollars alongside the sterling equivalent in pounds, shillings, and pence — reflects the lingering commercial ties to Caribbean and South American branches where British currency conventions remained practical. The sterling conversion printed directly on the face was a genuine operational necessity, not decorative tradition.
American Bank Note Company's Ottawa facility handled production, one of several Canadian chartered bank contracts the firm held during this period before the Bank of Canada's 1935 establishment eventually ended private note issue entirely.