Catalog
30 Dollars Tropical treasures
| Issuer | Government of Antigua & Barbuda |
|---|---|
| Year | 1981 |
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| Currency | Dollar (1965-date) |
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| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | 30 GOVERNMENT OF ANTIGUA & BARBUDA 30 INDEPENDENCE NOVEMBER 1981 Minister of Finance 30 THIRTY DOLLARS 30 |
| Reverse description | The reverse of this gold foil note is executed entirely in embossed relief on a black ground, with a large central vignette occupying most of the field and portraying a Bananaquit bird perched amid banana tree foliage, both elements identified by printed labels within the design. Ornate vertical border panels of tropical plant scrollwork flank the central scene on either side, with the denomination "30" set in oval corner frames at all four corners. The issuer's name runs across the top within a raised banner, and "THIRTY DOLLARS" is contained in a rectangular panel at the base. |
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| Comments |
This note was part of a wave of collector-oriented legal tender issues that proliferated among small Caribbean nations in the early 1980s, when several governments — Antigua & Barbuda among them — recognized that limited-mintage commemorative currency could generate foreign exchange revenue with essentially zero circulation cost. The 1981 independence anniversary provided the occasion.
Gold foil construction makes these mechanically fragile; creasing is irreversible and common, which means genuinely flat examples are harder to find than the original print run would suggest.