Catalog
20 Pounds
| Issuer | Bank of Victoria Limited |
|---|---|
| Year | ND (1910) |
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| Reference(s) | P#A95 |
| Obverse description | Intricate guilloche border surrounds a central pink underprint with manuscript-style promise-to-pay text and printed serial number fields. An intaglio portrait vignette of Queen Victoria in crown and regalia occupies the left panel, while an oval heraldic vignette with crown appears at right. The denomination '20' appears in all four corners, with 'TWENTY POUNDS' lettered across the top and bottom registers. |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | BANK OF VICTORIA LIMITED TWENTY POUNDS Melbourne A Promise to pay the Bearer on demand the Sum of TWENTY POUNDS Value received No A0001 No A2,000 MANAGER |
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| Comments |
The Bank of Victoria Limited was one of Australia's older private trading banks, but by 1910 it was operating on borrowed time — the institution was absorbed into the National Bank of Australasia that same year, making any notes issued in the final period transitional instruments at best. A £20 denomination was substantial working capital in Edwardian Australia, and high-value private bank notes of this era rarely saw rough handling; they moved between merchants and clearing houses rather than through retail trade.
Bradbury, Wilkinson printed for numerous colonial and dominion banks during this period and brought consistent intaglio quality to the work. The undated format was typical of the bank's final note issues, with dates applied at the branch on signing.