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50 Centen West-Indische Bank
| Issuer | West-Indische Bank |
|---|---|
| Year | 1837-1848 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | Log in to see details |
| Currency | Log in to see details |
| Composition | Paper |
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| Obverse description | Uniface note printed in blue on watermarked laid paper, with a decorative typographic border composed of musical note ornaments attributed to the J.M. Fleischman typeface series. The central text block, set in letterpress, carries the denomination and redemption clause in Dutch, with the value numeral '50' repeated within a small framed cartouche at the lower right. Manuscript date and signature appear within the text, with variations recorded across the issue period 1837–1848. |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Reverse description | The note is uniface; the reverse is wholly unprinted and presents the surface of the watermarked laid paper stock. The WEST INDISCHE BANK text watermark is legible when the note is held to transmitted light, and the letterpress impression of the obverse registers faintly in mirror image through the thin paper. |
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| Comments |
The West-Indische Bank operated under a charter granted by the Dutch crown in 1828, primarily serving Suriname and the Dutch Antilles during a period when those colonies ran chronically short of small-denomination currency. This 50 Centen note filled a very specific gap — coin of that value was perpetually scarce in circulation, either hoarded, worn out of recognizability, or simply never shipped in sufficient quantity from the Netherlands.
Enschedé in Haarlem had been producing security documents for Dutch colonial authorities long before this commission. The watermark on this series is the primary authentication feature — no serial numbering or complex overprinting was employed.