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50 Pounds White
| Issuer | Bank of England |
|---|---|
| Year | 1870-1943 |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Size | 209.55 × 133.35 mm |
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| Obverse description | Unilateral white note executed in letterpress on plain white paper. A vignette of Britannia seated, enclosed within an ornate oval frame, appears at the upper left. The denomination "Fifty" is rendered in large decorative script at the lower left, with the promise-to-pay legend and branch date line in copperplate-style cursive script across the centre of the note. The Chief Cashier's manuscript signature appears at the lower right alongside the printed authorization for the Governor and Company of the Bank of England. |
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| Obverse lettering | Bank of England I promise to pay the Bearer on demand the Sum of Fifty Pounds here or in London For the Gov. and Comp. of the Bank of England |
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| Comments |
The "White Note" series — so called for the distinctive plain white paper printed on one side only — was the Bank of England's workhorse for large-denomination interbank and commercial settlement for the better part of a century. The 50 Pound denomination within this series was never intended for ordinary retail circulation; at a time when a skilled tradesman might earn £2 a week, these notes moved between merchants, clearing houses, and solicitors' offices.
Forgery was a persistent institutional anxiety throughout the series' run. The Bank's response was characteristically conservative: retain the same basic format across decades rather than introduce new designs that counterfeiters could study and adapt to. The 1939–1943 withdrawals were driven by wartime security concerns — German Operation Bernhard had demonstrated that Allied banknotes were viable forgery targets.
All notes in this series were individually numbered and signed by a cashier, making each technically a unique instrument.