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5 Dollars
| Issuer | Molsons Bank, Montreal |
|---|---|
| Year | 1908 |
| Type | Standard circulation banknote |
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| Obverse description | Green-tinted note with two oval portrait vignettes: a bearded gentleman to the left and a gentleman in formal attire to the right, both rendered in fine intaglio engraving. The central cartouche carries the denomination 'FIVE DOLLARS' in bold letterpress, flanked by intricate guilloche underprint work, with the bank title 'THE MOLSONS BANK' arching across the top and the date 'MONTREAL, 2ND JANUARY 1908' inscribed below. Two manuscript signatures of bank officers appear at the bottom, with the imprint of the American Bank Note Company, Ottawa noted at the lower margin. |
|---|---|
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| Reverse description | Printed entirely in green, the reverse is dominated by a central heraldic vignette bearing the Molsons Bank coat of arms within an ornate cartouche, surmounted by a crest and flanked by elaborate lathe-work scrollwork. Two large numeral '5' counters in rosette guilloche frames occupy the left and right fields, and fine geometric engine-turned patterns fill the remaining surface, creating a dense, security-oriented design throughout. |
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Molsons Bank was one of Canada's more durable chartered banks, tracing its origins to the Molson family's early 19th-century commercial interests in Montreal. By 1908, it operated a solid national branch network, but its days were numbered — the Bank Act revisions and post-WWI consolidation pressures eventually led to its absorption by the Bank of Montreal in 1925, after which all outstanding chartered bank notes were retired from circulation.
The American Bank Note Company's Ottawa facility handled this printing, distinguishing it from the New York parent operation. That Ottawa provenance matters for collectors sorting plate varieties within the series.