5 Pounds

The Central Bank of Ireland brought printing fully in-house during the 1970s, and this series reflects that transition — earlier Irish notes had relied on specialist security printers abroad, notably Waterlow and De La Rue. Printing domestically required significant investment in equipment and expertise, and the long signature run across nearly two decades shows the series outlasting multiple governor appointments.

T.K. Whitaker's appearance on the earliest date signature is notable: he had been the architect of Ireland's 1958 economic recovery program before moving to the governorship, making his name on the currency a rare instance of a technocrat's policy fingerprints appearing twice on the same country's economic history.