Catalog
5 Pounds Sterling
| Issuer | Government of Tonga |
|---|---|
| Year | 1921 |
| Type | Standard circulation banknote |
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| Obverse description | Green intaglio print on yellow guilloche underprint. The Tongan Coat of Arms is centrally placed, flanked by palm tree vignettes at left and right. The text of the treasury note promise, issuing authority, place of issue, and date are inscribed across the face, with the denomination expressed in both numeral and word form. |
|---|---|
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| Reverse lettering | £5 FIVE |
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| Comments |
Tonga issued its own pound-denominated notes from 1921 under direct government authority rather than through a chartered bank — an arrangement unusual for a Pacific territory of this size and one that reflected the kingdom's formal status as a British protectorate, not a colony. The Colonial Bank of Australasia and later the Bank of New Zealand operated on the islands, but neither held the note-issuing privilege.
De La Rue's involvement guaranteed technical quality, but surviving examples of P#4 are genuinely rare. The 1921 series had very limited print runs, and Tonga's small, cash-dependent economy meant notes at the five-pound level circulated hard when they did move.