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20 Pounds British Linen Company
| Issuer | British Linen Company |
|---|---|
| Year | 1822 |
| Type | Standard circulation banknote |
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|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | 20 Incorporated by Royal Charter Edinburgh THE BRITISH LINEN COMPANY Promise to pay on Demand to Alex Blair or Bearer Twenty Pounds Sterling By order of the Court of Directors Perkins & Heath. Patent Hardened Steel Plate |
| Reverse description | Reverse is entirely unprinted, left blank on plain paper stock. |
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| Comments |
The British Linen Company — chartered in 1746 ostensibly to promote the linen trade — had pivoted entirely to banking long before this note was issued, though it retained the original charter name until its absorption into the Bank of Scotland in 1969. By 1822 it was operating as a fully functioning commercial bank across Scotland, competing directly with the Royal Bank and the Bank of Scotland itself.
Perkins, Bacon & Petch had only recently established their London operation, bringing American steel-engraving techniques to British note production. Jacob Perkins's intaglio methods were specifically marketed as counterfeit-resistant, and Scottish banks were among the earliest adopters.