Catalog
5 Rupees
| Issuer | Government of Seychelles |
|---|---|
| Year | 1914 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | Log in to see details |
| Currency | Log in to see details |
| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Size | Log in to see details |
| Shape | Log in to see details |
| Printer | Log in to see details |
| Designer(s) | Log in to see details |
| Engraver(s) | Log in to see details |
| In circulation to | Log in to see details |
| Reference(s) | P#A3 |
| Obverse description | Plain typeset emergency issue on unadorned paper, with the issuer's title in large Gothic script across the top. The promissory text is set in letterpress, with the denomination value 'Rs 5' in a boxed vignette to the left and 'FIVE RUPEES' in bold capitals at centre. An embossed dry seal appears at lower right, with two manuscript signature lines below bearing the titles of the Auditor and Treasurer, both Commissioners of Currency. |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Reverse description | Log in to see details |
| Reverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Signature(s) | Log in to see details |
| Protection type | Log in to see details |
| Protection description | Impressed dry seal at lower right of obverse, bearing a crowned emblem of the Government of Seychelles. |
| Variants | Log in to see details |
| Comments |
The Government of Seychelles issued paper currency directly rather than through a chartered bank — an arrangement common among smaller British Crown dependencies where establishing a full colonial bank branch was not economically viable. This 5 Rupees note from 1914 predates the eventual consolidation of Seychelles currency authority and belongs to an early series that was issued in very small quantities relative to the islands' limited monetary circulation needs.
The embossed seal as the sole security feature reflects both the era and the remote administrative reality — sophisticated intaglio printing was neither available locally nor warranted for a colony of this scale. Pick-listed as P#A3, suggesting provisional or retrospective cataloguing, which typically indicates surviving specimens are rare and documentation was assembled after the fact from scattered archival sources.