Catalog
500 Francs Neuchâtel Commercial Bank
| Issuer | Banque Commerciale Neuchâteloise |
|---|---|
| Year | 1896-1906 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | Log in to see details |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Printer | Log in to see details |
| Designer(s) | Log in to see details |
| Engraver(s) | Log in to see details |
| In circulation to | Log in to see details |
| Reference(s) | P#S415 |
| Obverse description | Green intaglio-printed note with a central text panel bearing the bank name and denomination in bold letterpress, framed by intricate guilloche borders. To the left, a standing classical female allegory with a tablet and staff is rendered in finely engraved detail; to the lower right, a seated putto rests beside a denomination cartouche. The denomination numeral '500' appears in three positions across the note, with series and number references printed in red, and the printer's imprint of Bradbury Wilkinson & Co., Londres at the foot. |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Reverse description | Log in to see details |
| Reverse lettering | 500 500 CINQ CENTS FRANCS FÜNFHUNDERT FRANKEN CINQUE CENTO FRANCHI 500 500 |
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| Comments |
The Banque Commerciale Neuchâteloise was one of several cantonal and regional private banks operating in Switzerland before the Swiss National Bank's founding in 1907 effectively ended the era of plural note issuance. This 500-franc denomination sat at the high end of what a regional commercial bank would put into circulation — a sum that in the 1890s represented serious money, more likely to move between merchants and notaries than through everyday retail trade.
Bradbury Wilkinson's involvement is worth noting: the New Malden firm held printing contracts with dozens of smaller European issuers precisely because they could deliver security-print quality that in-house cantonal production could not match. The plate work would have been engraved in London regardless of where the issuing authority sat.
The series spans a full decade, suggesting reorders rather than a single print run.