Catalog
5 pounds WW2 Issue
| Issuer | Government of Fiji |
|---|---|
| Year | 1942 |
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| Value | 5 Pounds |
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| Obverse description | A Reserve Bank of New Zealand five pounds note dated 1 August 1934, conscripted as an emergency wartime issue and overstamped in bold black letterpress with 'GOVERNMENT OF FIJI' across the upper portion and 'THIS NOTE IS LEGAL TENDER IN FIJI ONLY' along the lower margin. The underlying New Zealand note carries a central vignette of a kiwi bird to the left and a portrait of a Maori chief in an oval frame to the right, with the denomination '£5' repeated in the four corners against an intricate guilloche underprint in blue-green tones. A manuscript Governor's signature appears at lower centre on the original host note. |
|---|---|
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| Variants | P#46a - serial # prefix 4K P#46b - serial # prefix 5K |
| Comments |
Fiji's wartime currency underwent a significant security intervention in 1942: notes of this series were issued with a "FIJI" overprint specifically to prevent Japanese forces from using captured British Pacific currency stocks should they take the islands. The threat was not theoretical — Japanese forces had already moved through the Solomons, and Fiji was a critical Allied logistics hub.
The high denomination made this note particularly sensitive. Large-value wartime issues from Pacific territories in this period are consistently underrepresented in collections, partly because so few entered everyday hands and partly due to wartime destruction of surpluses.