500 Rupees

The P#40 series was introduced as part of a broader redesign of Mauritian currency following the country's gradual move away from its post-independence monetary architecture. Thomas De La Rue handled the full production run from their London facilities, as they had for Mauritian notes across several prior series — a printing relationship that stretched back decades and reflected the island's continued reliance on established Commonwealth-era security printers well into the late 1980s.

The 500 rupee denomination was the highest face value in general circulation at the time of issue, making condition-related wear on high-denomination examples more common than collectors sometimes expect — these moved through commercial channels, not just banking reserves.