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20 Pounds - Elizabeth II William Shakespeare
| Issuer | Bank of England |
|---|---|
| Year | 1970-1991 |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Size | 160 × 90.5 mm |
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| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | BANK OF ENGLAND I PROMISE TO PAY THE BEARER ON DEMAND THE SUM OF TWENTY POUNDS LONDON FOR THE GOVr. AND COMPa. OF THE BANK OF ENGLAND |
| Reverse description | A vignette of William Shakespeare appears at right, rendered in intaglio against a multicolour guilloche underprint, with a scene from Romeo and Juliet occupying the left portion of the note. The overall colour scheme continues the purple and violet tones of the obverse, with intricate latticework patterns framing the central design elements. |
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| Comments |
Harry Eccleston spent nearly three decades as the Bank of England's principal designer, and this note — his first major commission for the £20 denomination — introduced Shakespeare as a series figure, a deliberate cultural statement at a time when the Bank was reworking its entire portrait-reverses program. Eccleston both designed and engraved the plate himself, an increasingly rare combination by the 1970s.
The note ran through five different signature combinations, making Fforde the earliest and Gill the latest. Somerset issues are distinguished by having the watermark incorporate both Elizabeth II and Shakespeare — a dual-portrait watermark unusual for British domestic currency of the period.