Catalog
20 Pounds Sterling
| Issuer | Natal Bank Limited, Pietermaritzburg |
|---|---|
| Year | 185x |
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| Currency | Pound sterling (1694-date) |
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| Obverse description | Black intaglio print on white paper with elaborate guilloche borders at all four corners, each bearing the numeral '20'. The central text panel carries the promise to pay inscription in copperplate script reading 'We Promise to pay the Bearer on demand at our office here the Sum of TWENTY POUNDS. Value received. Pietermaritzburg.' flanked by two oval vignettes: a Georgian-style building with a horse-drawn carriage at left, and a colonial bank building at right. The issuer's name 'NATAL BANK LIMITED' is set in large serif capitals at the top centre beneath a royal coat-of-arms, with the denomination 'TWENTY' in a central cartouche below the text panel. The note bears 'No. A' serial number positions at upper left and right, and carries 'SPECIMEN' and 'CANCELLED' perforations across the face. |
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| Obverse lettering | NATAL BANK LIMITED TWENTY POUNDS We Promise to pay the Bearer on demand at our office here the Sum of TWENTY POUNDS. Value received. PIETERMARITZBURG 18 No. A GENERAL MANAGER FOR THE TRUSTEES BY ORDER OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS 20 |
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| Comments |
The Natal Bank Limited was established in Pietermaritzburg in 1854, making it one of the earliest commercial banks in the colony — and this £20 note, undated to the decade, was among the highest denominations it circulated. A note of this value would have been essentially invisible in retail trade; it moved between merchants, land agents, and colonial administrators settling large accounts.
Skipper & East were the standard London recourse for colonial issuers who needed engraved security printing but lacked local infrastructure. The "185x" dating reflects incomplete register records, not an undated issue — the month and year were hand-completed at time of release.