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20 Pounds National Bank
| Issuer | The National Bank Limited |
|---|---|
| Year | 1937-1959 |
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| Currency | Pound sterling (1929-date) |
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| Obverse description | The obverse is printed in brown and green tones, with a central large £20 denomination numeral set within an ornate guilloche surround. To the lower left, a seated allegorical figure of Hibernia is shown beside a harp, framed by an oval vignette border with the inscription 'Established 1835'. The bank title 'THE NATIONAL BANK LIMITED' runs across the top, with the place of payment 'at Belfast' and the promise-to-pay clause positioned to the right. |
|---|---|
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| Protection type | Watermark |
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| Comments |
The National Bank Limited was an Irish commercial bank, not a central bank — its notes circulated in parallel with those of the Currency Commission and later the Central Bank of Ireland under a legislative arrangement that permitted certain associated banks to continue issuing their own paper currency long after Irish independence. The 1927 Currency Act had consolidated most issuance, but grandfathered existing note-issuing banks under strict backing requirements, which is why private Irish bank notes persisted well into the mid-twentieth century.
The National Bank was ultimately absorbed into the Bank of Ireland in 1966, and its note-issuing privileges had ceased before that merger completed.