Catalog
20 Franken / Francs / Franchi
| Issuer | Schweizerische Nationalbank / Banque Nationale Suisse / Banca Nazionale Svizzera / Banca Naziunala Svizra |
|---|---|
| Year | 2000-2014 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | 20 Franken |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Size | Log in to see details |
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| Printer | Log in to see details |
| Designer(s) | Log in to see details |
| Engraver(s) | Log in to see details |
| In circulation to | Log in to see details |
| Reference(s) | Log in to see details |
| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Reverse description | The reverse presents architectural and mechanical imagery associated with Honegger's locomotive-inspired musical work, including a large stylised turbine or wheel vignette rendered in intaglio across the centre and lower half, set against a multicoloured guilloche background in green, orange, and violet tones. The large red numeral '20' is positioned at upper left, with the denomination inscribed as 'Vingt Francs / Venti Franchi' in vertical text at the right margin. Signature lines for the President of the Council and a member of the Governing Board appear in the upper right area, with the serial number printed twice in red. |
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| Signature(s) | Log in to see details |
| Protection type | Watermark, Security thread, Color-shifting ink |
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| Comments |
The eighth series of Swiss National Bank notes was commissioned in the late 1970s but took nearly two decades to reach circulation — the 20 Franken finally entered use in 1996, with the 2000–2014 date range on this example reflecting the extended print run rather than any reissue. Switzerland kept the seventh series valid in parallel for years, running two series simultaneously, which was deliberate policy rather than administrative delay.
Orell Füssli has printed Swiss banknotes since the nineteenth century and remains one of the few security printers still vertically integrated with the issuing authority's home country. Zintzmeyer's design scheme for the eighth series was thematic by denomination — each note assigned to a different artistic movement.