Catalog
50 Dollars
| Issuer | Imperial Bank of Canada, Toronto |
|---|---|
| Year | 1923 |
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| Shape | Rectangular |
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|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | IMPERIAL BANK OF CANADA WILL PAY TO BEARER ON DEMAND TORONTO, Nov. 1st 1923 FIFTY DOLLARS PRESIDENT GENERAL MANAGER |
| Reverse description | The reverse is printed entirely in orange-brown on a light ground, with a large symmetrical guilloche design at centre incorporating the arms of Canada — a crowned lion atop a shield — within a circular medallion. Flanking the central medallion are two large numeral '50' counters set within intricate lathe-work panels. The bank title 'IMPERIAL BANK OF CANADA' arches across the top, with 'FIFTY DOLLARS' lettered along the lower border, the denomination numeral '50' repeated at the four corners. |
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| Comments |
The Imperial Bank of Canada never grew into one of the country's dominant chartered banks — it was absorbed by the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce in 1961 — but its late note issues from the 1920s were produced to a high technical standard by the Canadian Bank Note Company at their Ottawa plant. The 1923 series represents some of the last privately circulated chartered bank currency in Canada before the Bank of Canada Act of 1934 began the process of consolidating note issue under federal control.
Fifty-dollar denominations from any chartered bank of this period saw limited day-to-day handling; the face value was substantial enough that most examples that survived did so in near-intact condition through hoarding or bank reserve retention rather than active commercial use.