Catalog
50 Francs
| Issuer | Banque d'Emission du Rwanda et du Burundi |
|---|---|
| Year | 1960 |
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| Composition | Paper |
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| Obverse description | Printed in red on a cream ground, the right half of the face is occupied by a framed intaglio vignette of a seated lioness facing left against a savanna background. The left portion carries the bank title at top, the denomination "CINQUANTE FRANCS" in large letterpress, the legend "PAYABLES A VUE", two manuscript signature lines captioned "UN ADMINISTRATEUR" and "LE PRESIDENT" respectively, and the issue date below. Denomination numerals "50" appear in solid red panels at lower left and upper right, with an intricate guilloche underprint covering the entire field. |
|---|---|
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| Variants | P#4a - 15.09.1960, 01.10.1960 |
| Comments |
The Banque d'Emission du Rwanda et du Burundi was itself a transitional institution — created in 1960 to replace the Banque du Congo Belge et du Ruanda-Urundi as Belgian decolonization accelerated, it issued currency for a territory that would split into two independent states within two years. This note predates both Rwandan and Burundian independence by a matter of months.
Thomas De La Rue handled the entire series. The notes were printed in London for territories that Belgium was visibly preparing to relinquish, a quiet administrative fact embedded in the issuer's name itself.