Catalog
200 Dollars Mauritius Commercial Bank
| Issuer | Mauritius Commercial Bank |
|---|---|
| Year | 1839 |
| Type | Standard circulation banknote |
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| Obverse description | Central oval vignette presents a busy harbour scene with sailing vessels and waterfront buildings; denomination numerals '200' appear in ornate frames at upper left and upper right corners, with a further numeral at lower centre within a guilloche panel. The bank title arches across the top in bold letterpress, with the promise-to-pay text and dual denomination in dollars and sterling rendered in script and letterpress across the body of the note. Two oval 'CANCELLED' handstamps are applied at lower left and lower right. |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | MAURITIUS COMMERCIAL BANK PROMISE TO PAY THE BEARER ON DEMAND THE SUM OF TWO HUNDRED DOLLARS FORTY POUNDS STERLING COLONIAL CURRENCY VALUE RECEIVED FOR THE MAURITIUS COMMERCIAL BANKING COMPANY |
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The Mauritius Commercial Bank, founded in 1838, was the island's first private commercial bank and began issuing its own notes almost immediately. This 1839 note predates the establishment of any central banking authority on the island — the MCB operated with considerable autonomy in those early years, filling a vacuum left by the departure of earlier colonial monetary arrangements.
Private bank issues from Mauritius at this period are exceptionally rare survivors. The tropical climate was hard on paper, and most notes from the MCB's earliest series were either redeemed and destroyed or simply deteriorated in circulation.