5 Pounds Reserve Bank

This series bridges two distinct phases of Australian monetary administration. The Coombs/Wilson pairing reflects the long institutional dominance of H.C. Coombs, who served as Governor of the Commonwealth Bank and then the Reserve Bank across an extraordinary twenty-year stretch. Harold Holt's appearance on the 1964 signature combination is a curiosity — he signed as Treasurer, a role he held until 1966 before becoming Prime Minister the following year, disappearing while swimming at Cheviot Beach in December 1967.

The entire series was rendered obsolete by decimalisation on 14 February 1966, when the Australian pound was replaced by the dollar at a two-to-one conversion rate.