| Descripción del anverso |
The obverse is engraved in the American Bank Note style, with three allegorical vignettes framing the central text block: at upper centre, a pastoral rural scene with cattle and a reclining male figure; at lower left, two standing female figures in traditional Swiss costume; and at lower right, a single female figure with a basket. Denomination numeral '20' appears in ornate panels at the lower left and upper right corners, with 'FRANKEN' inscribed in decorative cartouches at upper left and lower right. The central text reads 'Die Bank in St. Gallen zahlt dem Ueberbringer gegen diese Anweisung ZWANZIG FRANKEN neue Schweizer Währung' with spaces for series, number, date, and authorising signatures. |
| Leyenda del anverso |
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| Descripción del reverso |
The reverse presents a mirror-image impression of the obverse design, consistent with the show-through characteristic of the thin cotton paper stock used in this issue, with no independently printed reverse design elements; the vignettes, inscriptions, and numeral panels are visible in reverse as a direct consequence of the intaglio printing technique applied to the obverse. |
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| Firma(s) |
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| Tipo de protección |
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| Descripción de la protección |
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| Variantes |
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The Bank in St. Gallen was one of several cantonal and private Swiss banks that turned to American security printers in the early 1850s — a practical choice, since Toppan, Carpenter, Casilear & Co. had established a strong reputation for anti-counterfeiting techniques, particularly their intricate lathe-work guilloche patterns, which Swiss domestic printers couldn't easily replicate at the time.
Sheets crossed the Atlantic before the notes ever entered Swiss hands. That transatlantic supply chain was unremarkable for the period but feels incongruous given how fiercely local Swiss banking identity would become in later decades.