Catalog
50 Shillings Western numerals only
| Issuer | Banki Kuu ya Kenya / Central Bank of Kenya |
|---|---|
| Year | 1969-1971 |
| Type | Standard circulation banknote |
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|---|---|
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| Reverse description | The central intaglio vignette presents an agricultural cotton-picking scene with multiple workers harvesting in a broad field, figures in the foreground carrying baskets, and a receding landscape leading to the snow-capped peaks of Mount Kenya at the horizon. Intricate guilloche borders interspersed with floral motifs frame the composition. Denomination numerals in Western Arabic script appear in each corner. |
| Reverse lettering | 50 FIFTY SHILLINGS |
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| Comments |
Kenya's first banknote series launched at independence used Eastern Arabic numerals alongside Western ones — a nod to the coast's long mercantile ties with the Arab world. This issue, designated with Western numerals only, represents the revised printing that dropped that bilingual numeral convention, likely reflecting a practical decision about legibility and standardization rather than any political statement. Bradbury Wilkinson produced both variants, which makes distinguishing them a matter of numeral inspection rather than paper or ink.
Two signature combinations are recorded for P#9. The Ndegwa/Gevau pairing is the scarcer of the two.