ibns

Journal
Volume 47, Number 4, 2008

Insect Images on Banknotes, Part II

Variants of the Hungarian 1,000 Peng Banknote
Operation Bernhard
Note Security: Optiks
Serial Numbers of Operations Bernhard and Andrew

Editors Column
Peter Symes
Welcome to another edition of the IBNS Journal. I am pleased to say that we have a good
selection of articles in this edition and a good store of material for your consumption in
future Journals. I am encouraged so many people are now expressing the results of their
endeavours in the Journal. Ultimately we are all beneficiaries of this effort.
This edition sees Part II of the thematic work of Insects on Banknotes, one of
the many popular themes that influence collectors. John Sandrock presents the
first of his three-part series on Foreign Banks in China, opening a window that will
be unfamiliar to many readers. Vladimr Kudlk presents an interesting piece on
Hungarys 100-pengo note and Owen Linzmayer presents another of his articles on
Security features, this time on Optiks.
We are also visiting the world of Operation Bernhard. Many members will be familiar
with this Operation, which has been the subject of numerous books and articles. So why
address the subject in the IBNS Journal? Funnily, I could only find one reference to an
article on Operation Bernhard in a previous IBNS Journal, this being a piece by Lance
Campbell in Volume 31, No.1. The contributions in this edition are by Stefano Poddi and
Pam West. Stefano tells the story of the Operation from a slightly different angle, and Pam
lists some statistical information that will surely be appreciated by many collectors.
Regular features are presented, and Id encourage all members to read the IBNS
Announcements and minutes of the IBNS Meetings. Dont forget to think about
nominating a book for the IBNS Book of the Year, and a banknote for the IBNS
Banknote of the Year. I hope everyone learns something in this edition!

Presidents Message
Peter Symes
May you live in interesting times! Reported to be an ancient Chinese curse, this phrase
has come to pass; in that we are now living in interesting times. Whether the world slides
further into recession, deeper into depression, or our economies stabilize, some things
remain constant.
I am sure many members are wondering whether buying and selling banknotes
will be affected during this period of instability. I am no oracle, but for most
people who collect banknotes, there will probably be little change in the value of
their collections caused by troubled economic times. Perhaps if some people find it
necessary to raise money in a short period, and if some people can no longer afford
to purchase notes due to straitened financial circumstances, we may see some minor
activity, but I suspect most aspects of the hobby will generally be unchanged.
Prior to the economic crises currently attending the worlds economies, I was interested
to observe that while prices were very strong in some collecting areas and that banknote
collecting appeared to be gaining popularity, there seemed to be fewer people attending
banknote fairs and shows. Attendances at some shows in Australia are down and during
my first visit to Memphis in June this year; I was advised that attendance was declining.
It appears that attending shows is becoming less frequent due to the increased amount
of activity on the Internet. Most dealers have a web presence, and many notes are sold
through on-line auction houses. In some ways this saddens me. As a long-time attendee at
many shows, I have found that shows offer many benefits that are not found online.
At a show, you can meet and chat to a dealer, you can meet and socialize with
other collectors, sometimes attend one or more meetings held by special-interest
groups or societies, and get untold pleasure from just browsing through dealers
stocks. At large shows, such as London, Memphis and Maastricht, these benefits
are multiplied. So, if you have an opportunity to get to a show, especially where
banknote dealers attend, go for all the positive benefits, including buying banknotes!
The IBNS Journal content is copyrighted by its authors and may not be reproduced in any
form without the written consent of the author or the International Bank Note Society
([Link]).
IBNS Journal 47.4

Table of
Contents
2

Society Officers and Directors

Letters

5 Banknote News
Compiled by Murray Hanewich
6 IBNS Internet Auctions
Expressions of Interest Requested
Peter Symes
8 New Issues
Compiled by Ronny Hick and
Hans-Dieter Mller
23 Insect Images on Banknotes
Part IIArt and Literature,
Agriculture and Medicine,
and Security devices
Richard Underwood 3572
29 The Devils Workshop
Operation Bernhardthe
Story of the Biggest Banknote
Counterfeiting Scheme Ever
Devised.
Stefano Poddi
37 Serial Numbers of Operations
Bernhard and Andrew
Pam West LM-79
43 The Foreign Banks in China
Part IEarly Imperial Issues
(1850-1900)
John E. Sandrock 26-C
53 Variants of the Hungarian 1,000
Peng Banknote Dated 1 July 1927
Vladimr Kudlk 7734
56 Note Security: Optiks
De La Rues wide thread with
window is proving popular
Owen W. Linzmayer 7962
59

Pakistans Prize Bonds at Last

61 The Receipts of the Mohammed

Ali Jinnah Memorial Fund
Peter Symes 4245
62 Chapter News
Compiled by Arthur E. Levenite 2863
73

IBNS Announcements

75

New Members

76

Board Meeting Minutes

84

Ad Index

84

Free Ads

84

Classifieds
1

Society Officers and Directors

President
Peter Symes
GPO Box 933
Sydney NSW 2001
Australia
Ph: ++61-2-9401-5572
president@[Link]
First Vice President
Christof Zellweger
Giessenstr. 3
Au (SG) CH-9434
Switzerland
skanderbeg@[Link]
Second Vice President
Ron Richardson
[Link] 38704
Metro. Postal Outlet
North Vancouver BC V7M 3N1
Canada
[Link]@[Link]
Immediate Past President
Marcus Turner
451 Autumn Springs Drive
Avon, IN 46123, USA
maturner@[Link]
General Secretary (acting)*
David White
7 Burraneer Close
Ferntree Gully VIC 3156
Australia
Ph: +61 3 9763 4451
general-secretary@[Link]
UK Secretary*
Vacant. Send correspondence
to address:
36 Lee Heights
Bambridge Court
Maidstone Kent ME14 2LG
United Kingdom
uk-secretary@[Link]
US Secretary*
Brian Giese
P.O. Box 461
Sturtevant, WI 53177, USA
Ph: 262-632-4810
Fax: 262-638-1954
IBNSus@[Link]

*Ex officio board member

Australian Secretary* and

Assistant Treasurer Australia
David White
7 Burraneer Close
Ferntree Gully VIC 3156
Australia
Ph: +61 3 9763 4451
aus-secretary@[Link]

US Librarian
American Numismatic
Association
Attn: Librarian
818 North Cascade Avenue
Colorado Springs, CO
80903-3279, USA
Ph: ++1-719-482-9859

Chapters Secretary
Dave Kenney
36 Lee Heights
Bambridge Court
Maidstone Kent ME14 2LG
United Kingdom
kenneydp@[Link]

UK Auctioneer*
David Hunt
PO Box 412
Halifax W. Yorks HX3 5YD
United Kingdom
Ph: ++44- 1422351646
Fax: ++44-1422344709

Treasurer*
Joseph Boling
PO Box 29344
Indianapolis, IN 46229-0344
USA
Ph: 317-894-2506
Fax: 317-894-2910
joeboling@[Link]

Chair, YN Committee*
Joel Shafer
PO Box 170985
Milwaukee, WI 53217, USA
Ph: 414-350-6980
grbaypa@[Link]

Assistant Treasurer
Wendell Wolka
P.O. Box 1211
Greenwood, IN 46142, USA
Purduenut@[Link]
Assistant Treasurer UK
Clive Rice
25 Copse Side, Binscombe
Godalming Surrey GU7 3RU
United Kingdom
Ph: +44 1483 429168
IBNSuk@[Link]
Editor IBNS Journal (acting)
Peter Symes
GPO Box 933
Sydney NSW 2001
Australia
Ph: ++61-2-9401-5572
editor@[Link]
Education Programs Manager*
Don Cleveland
4 Burdoo Way
Mt. Martha VIC 3934
Australia
oregon@[Link]

Grievance and Discipline

Program Manager*
Tony Alsop
17 Jetty Road
Clifton Springs VIC 3222
Australia
Ph: 04-0933-1900
alsoptony@[Link]
Grievance and Discipline
Assistant
Hans van Weeren
Karakietlaan 6
Leidschendam NL-2261 CK
Netherlands
hans@[Link]
Grievance and Discipline
Assistant
Agnel Quiss
NCT Middle East FZE
PO Box 17071
Jebel Ali
Dubai
UAE
mgrmmradi@[Link]
Grievance and Discipline
Assistant
Stanley Serxner
5888 Glen View Drive
Virginia Beach, VA 23464-9003
USA
Ph: 479-4072

Director Region 1
Bryan Taylor
784 Fremont Villas
Los Angeles, CA 90042-5146
USA
btaylor@[Link]
Director Region 2
Joel Shafer
PO Box 170985
Milwaukee, WI 53217, USA
Ph: 414-350-6980
grbaypa@[Link]
Director Region 3
Simon Biddlestone
66 Moorsholm Drive
Wollaton
Nottingham Notts. NG8 2EF
United Kingdom
simonbid@[Link]
Director Region 4
Hans van Weeren
Karakietlaan 6
Leidschendam NL-2261 CK
Netherlands
hans@[Link]
Director Region 5
Ali Mehilba
247 el Horia Ave. Sporting
PO Box 861
Alexandria
Egypt
AliMehilba@[Link]
Director Region 6
Ian Yarde
PO Box 95
Flinders Lane VIC 8009
Australia
Ph: 03-9610-7079
[Link]@connexmelbourne.
[Link]
Director Region 7
Joseph Guerdy Lissade
88, Rue de la Reunion
Port-Au-Prince
Haiti
guerdylissade@[Link]

Continued on page 4

IBNS Journal 47.4

Weve got
money on
our minds.

(paper money, that is.)

[Link] users can now access U.S. paper money

price listings online in addition to more than 1 million price
listings for U.S. and world coins. The United States Paper
Money Guide includes all non-coin monetary issues of the
United states, including large-size, small-size, Fractional
Currency, National Bank Notes, error notes, pre-Civil War
Treasury notes, Silver and Gold Certificates, Military Payment
Certificates, encased postage and postage stamp envelopes.

Now Online: U.S. Paper

Money Price Guide
Only $7.95 per month or
$39.95 for an entire year

Society Officers and Directors

continued from page 2

At Large Directors

Thomas Augustsson
Fornhojdsvagen 12, 3tr.
Sodertalje S-152 58
Sweden
thomasaugustsson@[Link]
Jonathan Callaway
10 Luttrell Avenue
Putney
London SW15 6PF
United Kingdom
CALLAHILJO@[Link]
Don Cleveland
4 Burdoo Way
Mt. Martha VIC 3934
Australia
oregon@[Link]
David Cieniewicz
P.O. Box 3310
Huntsville, AL 35810, USA
dcien@[Link]
George Cuhaj
PO Box 433
Iola, WI 54945, USA
[Link]@[Link]

Peter Eccles
P.O. Box 2937
Auckland 1
New Zealand
[Link]@[Link]

Wendell Wolka
P.O. Box 1211
Greenwood, IN 46142, USA
Purduenut@[Link]

Kate Gibson
PO Box 819
Camberley Surrey GU16 6ZU
United Kingdom
kate@[Link]

Additional Appointed
Positions

Assistant Awards Program

Manager
Ron Richardson
[Link] 38704
Metro. Postal Outlet
North Vancouver BC V7M 3N1
Canada
[Link]@[Link]

General Advertising Manager*

Tim Welo
P.O Box 208
Purdys, NY 10578-0208, USA
Ph: 203-750-8838 ext 14
twelo@[Link]

Legal Counsel*
James Downey
1534 Pennsylvania Street
Sturgeon Bay, WI 54235, USA
Ph: (920) 746-9066
mufelika@[Link]

Archivist
Joseph Boling
PO Box 29344
Indianapolis, IN 46229-0344
USA
Ph: 317-894-2506
Fax: 317-894-2910
joeboling@[Link]

Webmaster
David White
7 Burraneer Close
Ferntree Gully VIC 3156
Australia
Ph: +61 3 9763 4451
webmaster@[Link]

Steve Milner
PO Box 436
Wembly WA 6913
Australia
durham_111@[Link]
J. M. J. M. (Hans) Seems
Graafschap Loonstr. 4
Horn NL-6085 CA
Netherlands
jmjm-horn@[Link]
Frank Spinelli
CP 264
Bergamo Centro
Bergamo 24121
Italy
spinfrank@[Link]
Paul Walters
502 E. Rutherford St.
Landrum, SC 29356, USA
paul3149@[Link]

Awards Program Manager*

Milt Blackburn
Box 33888
Station D
Vancouver BC V6J 4L6
Canada
Ph: 1-604-821-0130
Fax: 1-604-273-5922

Secretary Emeritus
Milan Alusic

*Ex officio board member

Letters
Dear Editor,
Congratulations to IBNS Journal and to you for your outstanding
condensed history of Azerbaijan notes. In Volume 47 Number
3, you clarify the complex politics of the Transcaucasian region
and the effects on the Azerbaijani note issue of 1918-1920. Your
article is timely when the south Caucasus is a focus of current
world news.
Those wanting an even fuller presentation of the early Soviet
revolutionary period affecting the three states of the Transcaucasian
Federation could consult E H Carr, The Bolshevik Revolution, Vol.I
pp. 343-397 and [Link] pp. 244-250.
As an addict of the notes described in your article, I would like
more information on the design and printing of the three series,
or even the paper. These notes (especially the 250R and 500R)
display astonishing variations in colour, tone and texture. The
principal example is the 500 Rouble of 1920, of which there

are at least twenty colour varieties (even within series) as well as

inconsistencies in obverse / reverse colour or shade combinations.
Might these, I wonder, have arisen from simultaneous printing at
different mints or emission houses? Have we any knowledge of the
emission numbers within each series? Forgery in such colours may
have been hard to achieve. You or your readers may know why
some series are easier to obtain in the better conditions, or how
the series numerals relate to the Cyrillic prefixes. The Arabic date
discrepancy is also quite fascinating.
I would be happy to hear from any of your specialists on these
matters.
Sincerely,
Alan M. Cole
18 September 2008

IBNS Journal 47.4

Banknote News
Compiled by Murray Hanewich 3649
Rare 1911 Canadian $500 note almost destroyed by shredder
brings $322,000 in auction
A vintage Canadian $500 bill described as a classic rarity and
one of only three known to exist from a 1911 printing that featured
a picture of Queen Mary, the wife of King George V has been
purchased at a Texas auction of antique currency for a stunning
US$322,000 by a Canadian-born businessman living in Dallas.
The bank note, its sale price hailed as an all-time record for
a piece of Canadian paper money, was first found 20 years ago
in an old book by an unnamed Canadian man. It was recently
re-discovered among a pile of papers being readied for a shredder.
Its existence represents a true miracle of survival announced
Heritage Auction Galleries, the Dallas-based collectibles giant
that handled the sale. The previous record price for a Canadian
bank note, also a $500 bill from 1911, was US$190,000 at a U.S.
auction in 2002. The Queen Mary note is so rare its absent even
from the Bank of Canadas own currency collection in Ottawa,
experts said.
The original owner of the newly sold $500 bill, believed to
be from Toronto, was apparently offered $15,000 by a dealer
in Canada before he revealed to the wider currency-collecting
community he possessed one of Canadas most sought-after
monetary treasures. Heritages consignment director, Michael
Moczalla, said the owner suspected it might be worth something
more and it definitely was! The bill sold to the unidentified
Dallas collector for more than 600 times its hefty face value.
Its the most important single Canadian bank note purchase
in history, said Troy MacDonald, a Moncton, N.B., Canadian
currency specialist, who served as adviser to the bills Dallas buyer.
He described the new owner of Canadas most valuable bank
note as a real-estate developer originally from Ontario, who still
maintains a strong Ontario and Canadian connection. He is not
only an investor and collector; he is a highly educated, deepthinking individual who has strong feelings about Canada.
MacDonald, who owns The Monetary Man vintage bank-note
dealership, described his Dallas-based client as the antique paper
money markets most dynamic buyer of Canadian currency in
the past two years. He said there were only about 40,000 bills
printed in 1911 with the $500 denomination comprising a
relatively small number of those. There wasnt another printing of
$500 bills until 1925, and those notes, which featured an image
of King George V, would have replaced nearly all of the Queen
Mary issues from 1911.
Its a remarkable story, said MacDonald. Someone was
sifting through paper on a desk and shredding documents. And
just prior to shredding a handful of documents, this $500 note
dropped out and was brought in for discussion to see if it had any
value. It was a true discovery note and, importantly, its in better
condition than the other two that exist.
Canwest News Service 27/10/08

IBNS Journal 47.4

Novelty bank notes, Ivory, laser pointers: Banned on eBayUK

eBayUK have announced three products now banned on eBay.
In truth these products are not able to be sold legally in the UK
anyway, so its not a great loss. Its a criminal offence to produce
novelty bank notes resembling British currency and from the 27th
October 2008 these will be covered under the eBay Counterfeit
Currency and Stamps policy. Ivory is a contentious issue as there
are a few exceptions where it can be legally sold, but eBay are
prohibiting all sales of Ivory to prevent unscrupulous dealers from
falsely claiming their items were legal antiques. There are already
guidelines in force for the sale of laser pointers and eBay are
merely mirroring these guideline on the site and theyll now be
covered by the Hazardous Materials policy
EbayUK

G&D combines OVD with laser-engraving

Giesecke & Devrient (G&D) has announced a new technology
the Laser Personalized Patch (LPP) which it claims will
significantly enhance protection against the counterfeiting of
all kinds of ID documents. The LPP is claimed to be the first
product to combine multiple security techniques in a single
personalized security device offering maximum protection against
forgery and manipulation.
Hans Wolfgang Kunz, who heads the Government Solutions
business unit at G&D, describes the advantages of the new
technology: This is the first time that multiple security elements
for ID documents have been combined in this form. The new
security device not only provides maximum protection against
forgery, but also enables the authenticity of documents to be
checked rapidly and simply with the naked eye.
The LPP works by integrating three separate security features,
each of which provides a high level of security in its own right.
The solution is based on Kinegram optically variable device
technology in which an image integrated in the document
creates a different illusion of movement depending on the angle
from which it is viewed. Optically variable devices (OVDs) are
already being employed today as a security element in a variety of
applications, including banknotes, passports, and other forms of
ID document such as vehicle registration papers.
The second feature of G&Ds new LPP technology is that it
also contains a ghost image integrated in the OVD. This is a
laser image engraved in the transparent OVD film showing a
miniaturized mirror image of the document-holders photograph.
The third personalized element of the new device is a laserproduced engraving in the OVD that stands slightly proud of
the surface and can thus be detected with the fingertips. The
document-holders birth date or eye color, for instance, can be
recorded here. The laser process used to produce the ghost image
and engrave the other personalized details results in a document
in which the holders personal data are inseparable from the
Kinegram image.

Bank note News

continued from page 5

The LPP technology is designed to be suitable for use in all

types of high-security ID documents, including identity cards,
drivers licenses, healthcare cards, and passports containing a
machine-readable PECSEC or polycarbonate data page. No
mention was made of incorporating the new technology in bank
note production.
Security Document World 03/11/2008

Mogadishu Forexs Reopen

Foreign exchange bureaus in Bakara, Somalias largest open-air
market in Mogadishu, reopened after a two day closure. The
bureaus closed for two days after an anonymous note dropped at
the market ordered those dealing in foreign exchange to fix the
exchange rate at 1,500,000 Somali shillings to $US100; it said
they should also accept mutilated local currency.
The warning came at a time when 3,000,000 Somali shillings
were exchanging for US$100, and forex bureaus would not accept
dirty and torn banknotes. The note warned that anybody who
disobeyed the orders would pay the price. The threat drew swift
reaction from foreign exchange dealers and even some traders,
who said they preferred to close their business rather than comply
with the orders. Critics blame the currency crises on the central
banks inefficiency.
Abdulkadir Khalif/Daily Nation

Counterfeit Kwacha, Shillings, Dollars, Francs and Meticais!

Police are holding three people found in possession of fake
banknotes of different denominations and currencies purported to
be worth 100 million shillings. The Dar es Salaam Special Zone
Police Commander, Mr. Suleiman Kova, told a news conference
yesterday that the suspects were arrested on Tuesday at Tandale
Kwa Tumbo in Kinondoni District.
He named the suspects as Charles Ngazula (62) and Juma
Salum (30), both residents of Tandale kwa Tumbo area in the city
and Hajji Salum (29), a resident of Turiani, Morogoro Region.
Mr Kova said the suspects were allegedly found with 455 fake
100-dollar bills and 40 fake 50-dollar bills. Suspects were also
found with 124 fake 10,000 shilling banknotes; 74 fake 5,000/; 18 forged 2,000/-; seven fake 1,000/- and 400 fake 500/banknotes, all in Tanzanian currency.
The suspects, he said, were also found with two forged notes
of 500 Malawi Kwacha, three fake notes of 20,000 Zimbabwean
dollars, 151 fake banknotes of 1,000 Mozambique Meticais, 34
forged bank notes of DRC currency and 13 fake Master Cards.
Mr Kova further said the suspects were allegedly found with two
talismans and two Rupees suspected to be used as protective
charm in their illegal operations. He said the trio would be
arraigned before the court after completion of investigations.
Daily News Dar es Salaam 03/11/2008

IBNS Internet
Auctions

Expressions of Interest Requested

s we inexorably move into the 21st century, I have

been receiving feedback from a number of members
concerning the IBNS Auctions. Our current mail-bid
auction is Number 64, showing how long these very successful
auctions have been going. While the mail-bid auction has
its place, and there is no intention of ceasing these auctions,
members have expressed a desire for the IBNS to hold auctions
on the internet.
The Society would like to entertain this possibility and as
some of our members are auction houses and other members
run, or have run, internet auctions, we are seeking expressions
of interest from individuals or companies that are prepared to
host IBNS internet auctions.
At this stage we have few guidelines as to how such auctions
might be run or managed. We ask those who submit an
expression of interest to provide their concept of how such
auctions might be run and managed. Some points to be
considered in making a submission are:
Frequency of auctions
Number of lots required (minimum and maximum) to
run an auction
The minimum value of an individual lot
How lots are submitted to the auctioneer
Charges to sellers and buyers
Draft terms and conditions under which the auctions
would be run
The proposed IBNS Internet Auctions will allow only
IBNS members to submit lots and bid for lots
The IBNS does not expect to make any money from these
auctions, as our auctions are services to our members
We do understand that costs will be incurred by anyone
running the internet auctions
Expressions of interest should be sent to president@[Link]
by 15 February 2009. Questions can also be sent to the same
email address.
Peter Symes

Pettinaro Bros.
World Paper Money Market
Large selection of historical and modern banknotes.
Free lists available at [Link]
G. C. Pettinaro, Piazza della Riscossa, 16 int. 50,
CH-6900 Lugano-Cassarate, Canton Ticino, Switzerland
[Link]@[Link]
Tel.: +41 91 970 28 52
Cell.: +41 76 45 18 135

[Link]@[Link]
Tel.: +39 02 5831 9790
Cell.: +39 392 8539 696

IBNS Journal 47.4

New Issues
Compiled by Ronny Hick and Hans-Dieter Mller

he following list of new banknotes has been compiled with

the assistance of IBNS members and our thanks go to those
who have helped us.
We welcome input from readers of the IBNS Journal and ask
that reports of new issues be sent to new-issues@[Link]; but,
before sending scans please check whether we are aware of a new
issue and also whether we have a suitable image. Simply go to the
IBNS web site, [Link], and select New Issues from the
menu. All new issues for the next IBNS Journal will be listed here
as reported. (If scans are submitted, please scan the images at 300
dpi and at 100%.)
In the following list the entries with indicate the note
is a new type and eligible for the IBNS Bank Note of the
Year, whereas other entries are new varieties, with changes in
signatories, dates, etcetera.
Exchange rates current at the time of listing are given in Euros
and US Dollars.

10 Francs 01.11.2007
Design like P-33e, but with new date. Signature titles LE
GOUVERNEUR and LE 2e VICE-GOUVERNEUR.
Face value 0.006 $0.01

Abbreviations: DLR: De La Rue; FCO: Franois-Charles

Oberthur; G&D: Giesecke & Devrient; HdM: Hotel des Monnaies

Design like P-27d, but with new date. Signature titles LE

GOUVERNEUR and LE 2e VICE-GOUVERNEUR.
Face value 0.01 $0.02

Afghanistan
500 Afghanis SH 1383
Design like P-71, but with year 1383 (2004 in the Christian Era).
New signature.
Face value 7.53 $10.63

20 Francs 01.11.2007

Courtesy of Chris Twining ([Link])

50 Francs 01.11.2007

1000 Afghanis SH 1383

Design like P-72, but with year 1383 (2004 in the Christian Era).
New signature.
Face value 15.05 $21.26
Bangladesh
500 Taka 2008
Design like P-45, but with year 2008. Signature: Salehudin Ahmed.
Face value 4.98 $7.29
Belize
20 Dollars 01.09.2007
Design like P-69b, but with new date. New signatures of
FINANCIAL SECRETARY and DIRECTOR, GOVERNOR
unchanged. Serial prefix DE.
Face value 7.58 $10.24

Courtesy of Chris Twining ([Link])

Design like P-36, but with new date. Signature titles LE

GOUVERNEUR and LE 2e VICE-GOUVERNEUR.
Face value 0.03 $0.04
500 Francs 01.10.2007

Burundi

Courtesy of Chris Twining ([Link])

Design like P-38d, but with new date. Signature titles LE

GOUVERNEUR and LE 1er VICE-GOUVERNEUR.
Face value 0.30 $0.43

Courtesy of Chris Twining ([Link])

IBNS Journal 47.4

Canada

Cuba

5 Dollars 2008
Design like P-101A, but with year 2008 on back. New signatures
Mark Carney as GOVERNOR and Paul Jenkins as DEPUTY
GOVERNOR.
Face value 3.36 $4.72

5 Pesos Convertibles 2007

Design like P-FX48, but with year 2007.
Face value 3.69 $5.41

50 Dollars 2008
Design like P-104, but with year 2008 on back. New signatures
Mark Carney as GOVERNOR and Paul Jenkins as DEPUTY
GOVERNOR.
Face value 33.65 $47.16
Congo (Democratic Republic)
50 Francs 31.07.2007

10 Pesos Convertibles 2007

Design like P-FX49, but with year 2007.
Face value 7.38 $10.81
Denmark
100 Kroner 2005
Design like P-61, but with year 2005. Series C.
Face value 13.44 $18.36
Djibouti
2000 Francs 2008

Courtesy of Daniel Brandt

Design like P-91, but with new date and slightly modified
security features. Signature unchanged. Printer G&D.
Face value 0.06 $0.09
100 Francs 31.07.2007

Courtesy of Ronny Hick

Design like P-40, but new bank title in French text on the front
and Arabic on the back. Text at bottom on back in French
modified. Watermark with arms and with letters BCD. Same
signatures as on P-40. Issued August 2008.
Face value 8.30 $11.33
Dominican Republic
50 Pesos Oro 2008
Design like P-170, but with year 2008. Slight modifications to
underprint. Signatures like 50 Pesos Oro 2006. Printer: FCO.
Face value 1.05 $1.43

Courtesy of Daniel Brandt

Design like P-92A, but with new date and slightly modified
security features. Signature unchanged. Printer HdM.
Face value 0.12 $0.18
200 Francs 31.07.2007

100 Pesos Oro 2008

Design like P-171, but with year 2008. Slight modifications to
underprint. Signatures like 100 Pesos Oro 2006. Printer: FCO.
Face value 2.11 $2.85
500 Pesos Oro 2004
Design like P-172, but with year 2004. Same signatures as 50
Pesos Oro 2006. Printer DLR.
Face value 10.54 $14.25
Egypt
25 Piastres 2008
Design like P-57, but with new date. Signature: Farouk Abdel
Baky El Okdah.
Face value 0.03 $0.05

Courtesy of Andreas Zwick

Design like P-95, but with new date and slightly modified
security features. Signature unchanged. Printer G&D.
Face value 0.26 $0.36

IBNS Journal 47.4

20 Pounds 17.01.2008
Design like P-65, but with new date. Signature: Farouk Abdel
Baky El Okdah.
Face value 2.68 $3.64
100 Pounds 10.01.2007
Design like P-67, but with new date. Signature: Farouk Abdel
Baky El Okdah.
Face value 12.76 $18.78

Georgia

50 Shillings 03.03.2008

5 Lari 2008
Design like P-70, but with year 2008. Enhanced security features.
New signatures: David Amaglobeli as President of the National
Bank of Georgia and Nika Gilauri as Finance Minister.
Face value 2.27 $3.55
20 Lari 2008
Design like P-72, but with year 2008. Enhanced security features.
New signatures: David Amaglobeli as President of the National
Bank of Georgia and Nika Gilauri as Finance Minister.
Face value 9.09 $14.20
Guernsey
5 Pounds 2008
Design like P-56, but with partly visible metallic security strip.
Signature: D. M. Clark.
Face value 6.29 $9.20
Honduras

Courtesy of Fritz-Jrgen Simons

Design like P-41, but with new date and signature.

Face value 0.49 $0.74
100 Shillings 03.03.2008
Design like P-42, but with new date and signature.
Face value 0.96 $1.30

5 Lempiras 13.07.2006
Design like P-85, but with new date. Signatures Gabriela
Nuez de Reyes as PRESIDENTA, Germn E Amrtel Beltrn
as GERENTE and Rebeca P. Santos as SECRETARIA DE
FINANZAS.
Face value 0.19 $0.26

200 Shillings 03.03.2008

Design like P-43, but with new date and signature.
Face value 1.98 $2.97

Hong Kong

1000 Shillings 03.03.2008

Design like P-45, but with new date and signature.
Face value 9.61 $12.98

20 Dollars 01.01.2007 from Standard Chartered Bank

Design like P-291, but with new date. Signature and signature
titles unchanged.
Face value 1.74 $2.56

500 Shillings 03.03.2008

Design like P-44, but with new date and signature.
Face value 4.81 $6.49

Latvia

500 Dollars 01.01.2007 from Bank of China

Design like P-338, but with new date.
Face value 45.84 $64.38

10 Latu 2008
Design like P-50, but with year 2008. Slightly modified security
features (numeral on front changes color).
Face value 14.23 $19.92

India

Libya

50 Rupees 2006
Design like P-97. Year 2006, without underprinted letter in serial
number. Signature: Y. Venugopal Reddy.
Face value 0.77 $1.13
Ireland Northern
20 Pounds 01.01.2008 from Ulster Bank Limited
Design like P-337, but with new date.
Face value 25.66 $34.89
Jamaica
1000 Dollars 15.01.2008
Design like P-86, but with new date. Signature: Derick Milton
Latibeaudiere as GOVERNOR.
Face value 9.83 $13.89
Kenya
All these notes have new signatures: Professor Njuguna Ndungu
as GOVERNOR and an unidentified signatory as MEMBER.

All new notes carry the signature of Farhat O. Bengdara, signing

as Governor of the Central Bank of Libya.
1 Dinar 2008
Design like P-68. New signature: Farhat O. Bengdara. Series 6.
Face value 0.58 $0.82
5 Dinars 2008
Design like P-69. New signature: Farhat O. Bengdara. Series 6.
Face value 2.92 $4.08
10 Dinars 2008
Design like P-70. New signature: Farhat O. Bengdara. Series 6.
Face value 5.84 $8.17
20 Dinars 2008
Design like P-67. New signature: Farhat O. Bengdara. Series 1.
Face value 11.67 $16.33
50 Dinars 2008
New type. Yellow-red. Front: Muhammar al-Ghaddafi, monument
on back. Signature: Farhat O. Bengdara. Holographic security strip
on front, wide metallic security strip on back. Series 1.
Face value 29.18 $40.83

10

IBNS Journal 47.4

Madagascar

Mexico

The signature of Rasamoely now appears on the notes of

Madagascar.

20 Pesos 14.05.2007
Design like P-122, but with new date. Series D. Signature:
Roberto Del Cueto Legaspi (as JUNTA DE GOBIERNO) and
Ral Valds Ramos (as CAJERO PRINCIPAL).
Face value 1.28 $1.85

100 Ariary 2004 (2008)

100 Pesos 14.05.2007

Courtesy of Ricardo Ramirez G

Courtesy of Peter Mosselberger

Design like P-86, but new Signature: Rasamoely as LE

GOUVERNEUR.
Face value 0.04 $0.06
200 Ariary 2004 (2008)
Design like P-87, but new signature Rasamoely as LE
GOUVERNEUR.
Face value 0.08 $0.12

Design like P-118, but with marks for the visually impaired.
Series DV. Signature: Guillermo Ortz Martnez (as JUNTA
DE GOBIERNO) and Ral Valds Ramons (as CAJERO
PRINCIPAL).
Face value 6.66 $9.82
200 Pesos

500 Ariary 2004 (2008)

Design and year like P-88. New signature: Rasamoely as LE
GOUVERNEUR.
Face value 0.21 $0.31
5000 Ariary 2008
Design like P-91, but value in Ariary only (Francs no longer
used). OMRON security dots. Signature: Rasamoely as
GOUVERNEUR.
Face value 2.12 $2.87
10,000 Ariary 2008

Courtesy of Ricardo Ramirez G

Courtesy of Peter Mosselberger

Design like P-92, but value in Ariary only (Francs no longer

used). OMRON security dots. Signature: Rasamoely as
GOUVERNEUR.
Face value 4.25 $5.73

New type. Green. Front: Juana Ins de Asbaje y Ramrez

de Santillana (Juana de Asbaje), quills in inkpot, book
POESIAS LIRICAS, gate of Sor Juana monastery. Back:
Hacienda de Panoayan, stucco from San Vicente Ferrer temple
in Chimalhuacn, volcanos Popocatpetl and Iztacchuatl.
Watermark Juana de Asbaje. Size 141 mm x 66 mm.
Face value 12.84 $18.49

Malawi
50 Kwacha 31.10.2007
Design like P-45, but with new date. Signatures unchanged.
Face value 0.27 $0.36

IBNS Journal 47.4

11

Series A. 15.02.2007 Signature: Guillermo Ortz Martnez (as

JUNTA DE GOBIERNO) and Ral Valds Ramons (as CAJERO
PRINCIPAL).

New type. Brown-red. Front: Mount Everest, Vishnu on Garuda

at center. Back: two antelopes. Signature: Krishna Bahadur
Manandhar. Watermark: Rhododendron.
Face value 0.10 $0.14
50 Rupees 2008

Series C. 14.05.2007 Signature: Roberto Del Cueto Legaspi (as

JUNTA DE GOBIERNO) and Ral Valds Ramons (as CAJERO
PRINCIPAL).

500 Pesos 15.02.2007

Design like P-120, but with new date. Additional marks for the
visually impaired at upper right. Series AP. Signature: Guillermo
Ortz Martnez (as JUNTA DE GOBIERNO) and Ral Valds
Ramos (as CAJERO PRINCIPAL).
Face value 32.09 $46.24
Morocco
20 Dirhams 2008
Design like P-68. New paper (long life, produced by German
company Louisenthal). Year of imprint unknown.
Face value 1.75 $2.72
50 Dirhams 2008
Design like P-69. New paper (long life, produced by German
company Louisenthal). Year of imprint unknown.
Face value 4.36 $6.79
Nepal

Courtesy of Ronny Hick

New type. Blue. Front: Mount Everest. Back: Himalayan Tahr,

mountains. Signature: Krishna Bahadur Manandhar. Watermark:
Rhododendron.
Face value 0.47 $0.69
100 Rupees 2008

The signature of Krishna Bahadur Manandhar now appears on

Nepals banknotes.
10 Rupees 2008

Courtesy of Fritz-Jrgen Simons

New type. Green-yellow. Front: Mount Everest, temple of

Nyatapole at center. Security element with statue of Tara. Back:
walking rhinoceros. Signature: Krishna Bahadur Manandhar.
Watermark: Rhododendron.
Face value 0.97 $1.37

Courtesy of Ronny Hick

12

IBNS Journal 47.4

Nigeria

50 Won 1992 (2007)

20 Naira 2008
Design like P-34, but with year 2008. Signature 14.
Face value 0.11 $0.17
100 Naira 2008
Design like P-28, but with year 2008. Signature 14.
Face value 0.59 $0.86
North Korea
1000 Won 2006
Design like P-45, but with year 95 (Korean count) and 2006
(in parentheses).
Face value 4.77 $7.02
The following notes were issued to celebrate the 95th anniversary of
the birthday of Kim Il Sung (born 15.04.1912, died 08.07.1994).

Courtesy of Ni Kan

Design like P-42, but with additional commemorative overprint

in Korean letters in one line.
Face value 0.24 $0.35
100 Won 1992 (2007)

1 Won 1992 (2007)

Courtesy of Ni Kan
Courtesy of Ni Kan

Design like P-39, but with additional commemorative overprint

in Korean letters in two lines.
Face value 0.005 $0.007
5 Won (2007)

Courtesy of Ni Kan

Design like P-40 (original year unknown), but with additional

commemorative overprint in Korean letters in one line.
Face value 0.02 $0.03
10 Won (2007)

Courtesy of Ni Kan

Design like P-41 (original year unknown), but with additional

commemorative overprint in Korean letters in one line.
Face value 0.05 $0.07
IBNS Journal 47.4

Design like P-43, but with additional commemorative overprint

in Korean letters in one line.
Face value 0.48 $0.70
200 Won 2005 (2007)

Courtesy of Ni Kan

Design like P-48, but with additional commemorative overprint

in Korean letters in two lines.
Face value 0.95 $1.40
500 Won 1998 (2007)

Courtesy of Ni Kan

Design like P-44, but with additional commemorative overprint

in Korean letters in one line.
Face value 2.38 $3.51
13

1000 Won 2006 (2007)

Qatar

The signatures of Abdullah Saud Al-Thani and Yousef Hussein

Kamal have already appeared on the 100- and 500-riyal notes and
now appear on the lower denominations.
1 Riyal 2008
Courtesy of Ni Kan

Design like P-45, but with years 2006 and 95 (Korean count) and with
additional commemorative overprint in Korean letters in one line.
Face value 4.77 $7.02
5000 Won 2006 (2007)

Courtesy of Ronny Hick

Design like P-20, but new signature and mark for the visually
impaired on front left (one vertical line). Issued 15.09.2008.
Face value 0.19 $0.27
5 Riyals 2008
Courtesy of Ni Kan

Design like P-46, but with years 2006 and 95 (Korean count) and with
additional commemorative overprint in Korean letters in one line.
Face value 23.84 $35.10
Pakistan
100 Rupees 2007
Design like P-48, but with year 2007. Signature: Dr. Shamshad
Akhtar (Governor of State Bank of Pakistan).
Face value 0.90 $1.33
Paraguay
10,000 Guaranies 2005
Design like P-224, but with year 2005. New signatures (like
P-225). Series D.
Face value 1.80 $2.43

Courtesy of Ronny Hick

Design like P-21, but new signature and marks for the visually
impaired on front left (two vertical lines). Issued 15.09.2008.
Face value 0.94 $1.37
10 Riyals 2008

Peru
20 Nuevos Soles 06.08.1998
Design like P-167, but with date 06.08.1998. Printer BA Banknote.
Face value 4.59 $6.70
Philippines
1000 Piso 2008
Design like P-197b, but with year 2008. Signature: Gloria
Macapagal-Arroyo with title Pangulo ng Pilipinas (President)
and Amando M Tetangco Jr with title Tagapangasiwa ng Bangko
Sentral (Governor of Central Bank).
Face value 14.76 $21.56

14

Courtesy of Ronny Hick

Design like P-22, but new signature and marks for the visually
impaired on front left (three vertical lines). Issued 15.09.2008.
Face value 1.88 $2.75

IBNS Journal 47.4

50 Riyals 2008

Samoa
New Series. All five following banknotes were printed at a cost of
$2,800,000. 9,400,000 banknotes were printed. The signatories
for each note are Niko Lee Hang (as Minister of Finance) and
Leasi Papalii Tommy Scanlan (as Governor). Printer is DLR.
5 Tala 2008

Courtesy of Ronny Hick

Design like P-23, but new signature and marks for the visually
impaired on front left (four vertical lines). Holographic strip on
front, partly visible security strip with imprint QCB 50 on back.
Issued 15.09.2008.
Face value 9.39 $13.74
Rwanda
500 Francs 2008

Courtesy of Fritz-Jrgen Simons

New type. Red-yellow. Beach with trees on front. Building on back.

Face value 1.26 $2.05
10 Tala 2008

Courtesy of Chris Twining ([Link])

Design like P-30, but with year 2008. Same signature as 2004 issue.
Face value 0.65 $0.91
1000 Francs 01.02.2008

Courtesy of Fritz-Jrgens Simons

Courtesy of Chris Twining ([Link])

Design like P-31, but with new date. Same signature as 2004 issue.
Face value 1.27 $1.83

IBNS Journal 47.4

New type. Blue. Rugby team (won International Rugby Board

Hong Kong Sevens in 2007) on front. Children on back.
Face value 2.52 $4.10

15

 20 Tala 2008

100 Tala 2008

Courtesy of Fritz-Jrgens Simons

Courtesy of Chris Twining ([Link])

New type. Yellow. Waterfall on front. Manumea bird (Didunculus

strigirostris) on back.
Face value 5.04 $8.20

New type. Green-yellow. Malietoa Tanumafili II on front. Church

on back. Hybrid banknote.
Face value 25.40 $41.01

50 Tala 2008

Scotland
20 Pounds 20.12.2007 from Royal Bank of Scotland
Design like P-354d, but with new date. Signature: Fred Goodwin.
Serial number range starts with B/69 500001.
Face value 25.66 $34.89
Swaziland
100 Emalangeni 19.04.2008

Courtesy of Fritz-Jrgens Simons

New type. Purple. Government building at Matagialalua on front.

Central Bank of Samoa building on back. Hybrid banknote.
Face value 12.70 $20.51
Courtesy of Ronny Hick

New type. Brown. Front: new portrait of King Mswati III.

Back: Rock formation. Commemorative overprint on front The
Kings 40th Birthday in light blue. On back 40th Independence
Anniversary in light blue. Series HM (possibly for His Majesty).
Signature: Majozi V. Sithole and Martin G. Dlamini.
Face value 8.92 $12.69

16

IBNS Journal 47.4

 200 Emalangeni 19.04.2008

The new signatures for Uganda: Emmanuel Tumusiime Mutebile

as GOVERNOR and Chris Manyindo Kassami as SECRETARY.
1000 Shillings 2007

Courtesy of Chris Twining ([Link])

Design like P-43, but with year 2007. New signatures (Emmanuel
Tumusiime Mutebile as GOVERNOR and Chris Manyindo
Kassami as SECRETARY).
Face value 0.41 $0.62
Courtesy of Ronny Hick

New type. Brown. Front: new portrait of King Mswati III.

Back: Swazi villagers by thatched circular-domed and fenced
huts. Commemorative overprint on front,THE KINGS
40TH BIRTHDAY in red. On back 40TH INDEPENDENCE
ANNIVERSARY in light blue. Series HM (possibly for His
Majesty). Signature: Majozi V. Sithole and Martin G. Dlamini.
Face value 17.83 $25.13
Tonga
100 Paanga 2008

10,000 Shillings 2008

Courtesy of Chris Twining ([Link])
Design like P-45, but with year 2008. New signatures (Emmanuel
Tumusiime Mutebile as GOVERNOR and Chris Manyindo
Kassami as SECRETARY).
Face value 4.10 $6.17
United Arab Emirates
500 Dirhams 2008
Design like P-24, but with year 2008. Same signatures as for the
2000 issue.
Face value 97.27 $136.12
Uruguay
20 Pesos Uruguayos 2008
Design like P-83, but with year 2008. Two signatures only.
Watermark: Juan Zorilla de San Martin. Series E.
Face value 0.69 $0.92
100 Pesos Uruguayos 2006
Design like P-85, but with year 2006. Two signatures only. Series D.
Face value 3.44 $4.62
West African States
5000 Francs 2007
Design like P-717K, but with year 2007. Country code letter
K found, probably other code letters also exist. New signature
combination 34.
Face value 7.62 $10.31
Zambia

Courtesy of Chris Twining ([Link])

New type. Commemorative issue: Coronation of King George

Tupou V. Issue date: 30.07.2008. Cherry red and white. 150 x
70 mm. Front: King George Tupou V. Vavau harbour on back.
Hybrid banknote. Signature: Feleti Vakauta Sevele and Otenifi
Afualo Matoto. Printer: DLR.
Face value 34.79 $54.15
Uganda

IBNS Journal 47.4

50 Kwacha 2008
Design like P-37, but with year 2008. Signature 12 (Dr Caleb M
Fundanga).
Face value 0.01 $0.01
5000 Kwacha 2008
Design like P-41, but with year 2008. Signature 12 (Dr Caleb M
Fundanga).
Face value 0.96 $1.41
20,000 Kwacha 2008
Design like P-46, but with year 2008. Signature 12 (Dr Caleb M
Fundanga).
Face value 3.86 $5.64

17

Zimbabwe
Monetary reform: 1 (new) Dollar = 10 Billion (old) Dollars, 10 zeros
were dropped. Signature of Gideon Gono on all denominations.

10 Dollars 2007

1 Dollar 2007

Courtesy of Stefan Rbbel

Courtesy of Stefan Rbbel

New type. Purple-blue. Front: Chiremba balancing rock formation.

Victoria Falls and buffalo on back. No mark for the visually
impaired in watermark area. Silver security strip with imprint RBZ
1. Watermark Zimbabwe bird and numeral 1. Printer G&D.
Face value 0.08 $0.12

New type. Light green. Front: Chiremba balancing rock

formation. Farmer on tractor and grain storage facility on back.
Marks for the visually impaired in watermark area: 2 triangles.
Silver security strip with imprint RBZ 10. Watermark Zimbabwe
bird and numeral 10. Printer G&D.
Face value 0.76 $1.14
20 Dollars 2007

5 Dollars 2007

Courtesy of Stefan Rbbel

Courtesy of Stefan Rbbel

New type. Light brown and green. Front: Chiremba balancing

rock formation. Kariba Dam and elephant on back. Marks for
the visually impaired in watermark area: 1 triangle. Silver security
strip with imprint RBZ 5. Watermark Zimbabwe bird and
numeral 5. Printer G&D.
Face value 0.38 $0.57

18

New type. Red. Front: Chiremba balancing rock formation.

Mining scene and miner on back. Marks for the visually impaired
in watermark area: 3 triangles. Silver security strip with imprint
RBZ 20. Watermark Zimbabwe bird and numeral 20. Printer G&D.
Face value 1.52 $2.28

IBNS Journal 47.4

 100 Dollars 2007

1000 Dollars 2007

Courtesy of Stefan Rbbel

Courtesy of Ronny Hick

New type. Light blue. Front: Chiremba balancing rock formation.

Botanic Garden and Zimbabwe ruins on back. Marks for the
visually impaired in watermark area: 1 triangle and 1 square. Silver
security strip with imprint RBZ 100 and Matapos Rocks. Watermark
Zimbabwe bird and numeral 100. Printer G&D.
Face value 7.61 $11.42

New type. Issue date: 17.09.2008. Brown and red. Front:

Chiremba balancing rock formation. High Court and
headquarters of Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe on back. Marks for
the visually impaired in watermark area: 3 squares. Silver security
strip. Printer G&D.
Face value 8.34 $12.01

500 Dollars 2007

10,000 Dollars 2008

Courtesy of Stefan Rbbel

Courtesy of Ronny Hick

New type. Light purple. Front: Chiremba balancing rock

formation. Cow in a dairy on back. Marks for the visually
impaired in watermark area: 2 squares. Silver security strip with
imprint RBZ 500 and Matapos Rocks. Watermark Zimbabwe bird
and numeral 500. Printer G&D.
Face value 38.04 $57.06

IBNS Journal 47.4

New type. Issue date: 29.09.2008. Blue and purple. Front:

Chiremba balancing rock formation. Machine and tractor on
back. Marks for the visually impaired in watermark area: 2 circles
and 1 square. Silver security strip. Printer unknown.
Face value (as at 16 October) 32.92 $44.07

19

 20,000 Dollars 2008

Egypt
1 Pound 31.01.2007

Courtesy of Thomas Augustsson

10 Pounds 26.09.2006

Courtesy of Ronny Hick

New type. Issue date: 29.09.2008. Brown. Front: Chiremba balancing

rock formation. Back: unknown. No marks for the visually impaired in
watermark area. No silver security strip. Printer unknown.
Face value (as at 16 October) 65.85 $88.14
50,000 Dollars 2008
New type. Issue date: 13.10.2008. Green. Front: Chiremba
balancing rock formation. Farmer on tractor, as on the $10
(above), and miner, as on the $20 (above), on back. Marks for the
visually impaired in watermark area: 1 circle and 3 squares. No
silver security strip. Printer unknown.
Face value (as at 16 October) 164.62 $220.36

Courtesy of Chris Twining ([Link])

Macau
20 Patacas 03.05.2008 from Banco da China

Updates Notes announced in IBNS Journal Vol. 47, No. 3

2008 where scans were not available at the time of publication.
Burundi
50 Francs 01.05.2006

Courtesy of Chris Twining ([Link])

Courtesy of Peter Mosselberger

100 Francs 01.10.2007

Courtesy of Chris Twining ([Link])

20

IBNS Journal 47.4

Mauritius

Uruguay

100 Rupees 2007

1000 Pesos 2008

Courtesy of Roland Schmittner

Courtesy of Fritz-Jrgen Simons

200 Rupees 2007

Zimbabwe
100,000,000,000 Dollars 01.07.2008

Courtesy of Roland Schmittner

500 Rupees 2007

Courtesy of Roland Schmittner

Courtesy of Thomas Augustsson

Mexico
200 Pesos 14.05.2007

Courtesy of Peter Mosselberger

IBNS Journal 47.4

21

Insect Images on Banknotes

Part IIArt and Literature; Agriculture and Medicine
Richard Underwood 3572
Continued from IBNS Journal Vol.47 No.3 pages 41 to 47

Insects in art and literature

n this section, I look at banknotes depicting insects that have

appeared in art and that have been inspired by literature.
Rather than look at the notes in alphabetical order according
to country, I have chosen to look at the personalities involved on
a chronological basis, the artists first and then the writers.
South Korea
The reverse of the new 5,000 won note of South Korea (P55)
shows paintings by the 16th century Korean artist, Sin Saimdang
(1504-1551). Her son, Yi I (also known as Yulgok), was a notable
Korean Confucian scholar and appears on the obverse. She was
born in 1504 in the Kangwon Province of Korea during the
Joseon (or Ri) Dynasty (1392-1910).
Sin Saimdang excelled at embroidery, calligraphy, drawing and
painting. She particularly enjoyed painting natural objects and
living creatures. Indeed, so lifelike were her paintings that one
story relates how some chickens pecked out the butterflies of a
painting laid out on a floor to dry.
The examples of her paintings that appear on the 5000 won
are mentioned in the official brochure produced by the Bank
of Korea, which states: The paintings on the back of the new
5000 won note are from a screen carrying eight paintings by Sin
Saimdang. Such Insects and Plants type themes were delicately
elaborated by a number of Joseon Dynasty artists. The eightpiece painting series by Sin Saimdang was designated tangible
cultural asset No. 11 by Gangwon-do in 1971. (Gangwon-do is
a province in South Korea.)
Amongst the watermelons and other plants, one can see
a beautifully drawn Swallowtail Butterfly and a rather less
convincing Katydid, a type of cricket. (The official brochure
states clearly that the bottom insect is a Katydid!)

South Korea P55 5,000 won with Swallowtail Butterfly and Katydid on reverse

Detail of Swallowtail Butterfly on reverse

IBNS Journal 47.4

Germany
The 1993 German 500-Deutsche-mark note (P43) celebrates
Maria Sibylla Merian (1647-1717). The obverse bears her
portrait as a young woman, together with a drawing of a Wasp,
while the reverse depicts a Dark Tussock Moth and Caterpillar.
Maria Merian was a notable 17th century German illustrator
and naturalist who produced a wealth of accurate paintings
of plants, insects and other animals. Her stepfather, a still-life
painter, encouraged her from an early age to draw and paint. She
developed an interest in plants and animals that she collected
locally. She began to study insects in earnest, as she was fascinated
by the transformation of caterpillars into beautiful butterflies.
She later published a large, fully illustrated book, in which
she presented the stages of development of different species of
butterflies, along with the plants upon which they fed.
Maria moved to Friesland in The Netherlands in 1685 and
in 1699 she travelled to Surinam with her younger daughter,
Dorothea Maria. She spent two years in Surinam, travelling
around the Dutch colony and sketching local animals and plants.
In 1701, malaria forced her to return to Europe.
Back in The Netherlands, Maria sold specimens she had
collected and published a collection of engravings about life
in Surinam. In 1705, she published the wonderful book,
Metamorphosis Insectorum Surinamensium about the insects
of Surinam. All her illustrations were accompanied by her
observational notes.
The Dark Tussock Moth and Caterpillar feature in one
of Merians exquisite paintings. This is her description of the
painting:
These tufty-haired caterpillars take their beginnings in April.
It is their way to roll together when they are touched and thus
remain like a ball. Their food is the dandelion. I have found
them in hedges where there are haws.
This caterpillar begins to change at the
beginning of May, taking its own hair
and also wood when it can, which it
bites up, and spinning an oblong egg
from the same. Therein it turns into a
black date-pit and at the end of May
this yellowish-brown moth comes out,
which flies only by night.
The moth has a wingspan of 35-45
mm. Primarily a moor land and coastal
species, it inhabits heath land, sand hills
and shingle beaches. The moths are on
the wing in July and August, and are
attracted to light.
The larvae are very hairy and have five
tussocks of dense hairs along the back,
and another at the tail end. They feed on
a number of plants and trees including heather and broom.
The illustration of the Dark Tussock Moth and Caterpillar on
the reverse of the note is actually an adaptation of Merians painting,
presumably to fit the design needs of the note. In the underprint
there is a ghostly moth outline that easily escapes notice.

Detail of Katydid on reverse

23

Regarding the Wasp on the obverse, I have not been able to

find any observational note for this illustration. Although the
official brochure describes it as a Wasp, it could possibly be an
Ichneumon fly. Ichneumons are parasitoids, laying their eggs on
the larvae of other insects.
Merians portrait appears in the watermark.

The Red Underwing Moth (Catocala nupta) eventually

appeared on the reverse of the Danish 100-kroner note issued in
1986 (P51) and in 1994 (P54). It is a large (80 mm wingspan)
nocturnal European species with drab brown forewings. The
hindwings have two large red stripes and are normally covered by
the forewings. When resting during the day the moth is almost
invisible, perfectly camouflaged against the bark of a tree. When
disturbed, it flashes its bright black and red petticoats in an effort
to surprise any attacker, such as a bird. It feeds on nectar and flies
in August and September.
The brown caterpillars, which are seen from April to May,
bear a striking resemblance to pieces of bark. Preferred habitats
are woodland, parkland and marshes, and the caterpillar feeds on
willow and poplars.

Denmark P51 100 kroner with Red Underwing Moth at left on reverse
Germany P43 500 Deutsche mark with Wasp on obverse and Dark Tussock
Moth and Caterpillar on Dandelion on reverse

Detail of Dark Tussock Moth and Caterpillar on reverse

Faeroe Islands
The 200-krnur note of the Faeroe Islands, issued in 2003 (P26),
depicts on the obverse a Ghost Moth amongst blades of grass.
This picture is from a watercolour painted by Zacharias Heinesen
(born 1936), a Faeroese landscape painter.
The Ghost Moth (Hepialus humuli) gets its name from the
display flight of the ghostly white male, which hovers, sometimes
slowly rising and falling, over open ground to attract females. In a
suitable location several males may display together in a lek.
Common throughout Europe except for the far south-east,
the male Ghost Moth has a wingspan of about 44 mm and both
forewings and hindwings are pure white, though buff-coloured
individuals can be found in the Shetland and Faeroe Islands. The
female is larger (wingspan about 48 mm) and has yellowish-buff
forewings with darker linear markings and brown hindwings. The
adults fly in June and July and are attracted to light. The species
over-winters in the larval state.
The larva is whitish and maggot-like and feeds underground on
the roots of a variety of wild and cultivated plants. The species can
be an economically significant pest in forest nurseries.

Detail of Wasp on obverse

Denmark
The Danmarks Nationalbank commissioned the Danish artist Ib
Andersen (1907-1969) to prepare a series of four illustrations of
Danish fauna for eventual use on the Danish notes. The series
comprised a Carucian Carp, a Red Underwing Moth, a Green
Lizard and a Common Red Squirrel. The moth was drawn from a
specimen provided by the Danish Zoological Museum.

24

Froyar P26 200 krnur with Ghost Moth at centre right on obverse

IBNS Journal 47.4

And now we look at two insects (both Dragonflies) inspired by

literature.
Belgium
The undated Belgian 5000-franc note (P145, 1982) shows on its
reverse a wonderfully-drawn Dragonfly with shimmering wings.
The obverse bears a portrait of Guido Gezelle (1830-1899), a
Belgian priest, poet and writer. Gezelle was born in Bruges in
1830 and was ordained a priest in 1854. He worked as a teacher
and priest in Roeselare in the Flemish province of West Flanders.
His poetry encompassed a range of nationalistic and linguistic
topics. He also wrote much about his love of nature. The back
of the note reflects his writings on the cycle of life and death as
illustrated by the water-cycle. At the upper left are clouds that
shed rain to form the water bodies on earth. The dragonfly and
the leaf reflect the dependency of animals and plants on water. At
the lower right, we see the waves on the water surface, giving rise
to evaporation, which eventually again forms clouds.

Detail of Dragonfly on reverse of Belgium P145 5000 francs

Norway
The 1996 50-kroner note of Norway (P46) depicts a small
Dragonfly on its reverse. The obverse bears a portrait of Peter
Christen Asbjrnsen (1812-1885), a celebrated Norwegian
naturalist, writer and scholar.
Asbjrnsen was born in Christiania (now Oslo) and became a
professional zoologist. He later became involved with forestry and
spent much time in the woods and forests of Norway, both on
business and pleasure.
From an early age, he was interested in folk tales and legends
and set about collecting and recording them. He retired in 1876
and died in Christiania in 1885.
One of the stories Asbjrnsen wrote was A Summer Night in
Krogskogen, a tale set on a summer night in a forest with a river
and lake. In the story men chat and exchange tales in the peace
and quiet of their surroundings. This story provides the theme for
the 50-kroner note.
The obverse of the note bears Asbjrnsens portrait with a
background of fir trees and the waters of a lake. The reverse shows
a forest tarn with water lilies and a small dragonfly, giving an
atmosphere of the peace and tranquillity of nature. The Bank
of Norways official description of the note says, Many of us
have experienced the stillness of a woodland tarn and the feeling
of magic as we glance into the water and see the reflections of
clouds overhead, hear the buzzing of a dragonfly and perceive the
fragrance of flowering water lilies.

Detail of Dragonfly

Insect Images Evincing Agricultural

and Medical Significance

There are four insect species and a mite that have been portrayed
on banknotes as having agricultural economic importance the
Honeybee, the Silkworm, the Desert Locust, the Small Fruit
Fly and the Oribatid Mite.
Honeybee (Apis mellifera)
Honeybees have long been recognised as having important
economic and agricultural importance. In ancient times, they
were used as a source of honey, then the only sweet food available.
When agriculture began to take shape, it was realised that
Honeybees played a valuable part in pollinating flowers and so
they were kept and valued for that purpose as well.
To the best of my knowledge France gets the honour of first
illustrating the Honeybee on a banknote. The obverse of the 5000
francs note of 1918 (P10) shows a small round hive with bees flying
above it at the upper left. I would not have recognised the object as
a hive, but the Curator of the Banque de France has advised me that
the note does indeed show a hive and bees at the left.

France P18 5000 francs with hive and Honeybees at top left on obverse

Detail of hive and Honeybees

Bulgaria issued an interesting 5-leva note in 1922 (P34)

depicting a pair of wickerwork beehives against a background
of trees and bushes. The hives are mounted on what appear to
be stone slabs, and each has a neat little thatched roof. Some
Honeybees can be seen crawling on the slabs, either entering or
leaving the hives, while others are visible in flight in the distance.

Norway P46 50 kroner with Dragonfly on reverse

IBNS Journal 47.4

25

Sweden P57 100 kronor with Honeybee pollinating flower on reverse

Bulgaria P34 5 leva with hives and Honeybees on reverse

The Netherlands 50-gulden note of 1982 (P96) shows on the

obverse a Honeybee on a sunflower head. The reverse shows a
representation of a field of sunflowers. These two images remind
us of the vital part that the Honeybee plays in the commercial
production of sunflower seeds.

Silkworm (Bombyx mori)

France issued a lovely 5-franc note in 1966 (P145) honouring
the great French chemist, Louis Pasteur. There are numerous
references to various aspects of his lifes work on both faces of the
note. Tucked away in the upper and lower right-hand borders of
the obverse are tiny images of silkworm caterpillars and moths.
These are in reference to the vital work he did on silkworm disease
in the 1860s.
In 1865, Pasteur was summoned to the aid of the silk industry
in southern France. The countrys enormous production of silk
had suddenly been devastated by an epidemic illness among
silkworms. Pasteur spent three years working on the problem, and
was eventually able to determine there were two different diseases
affecting the silkworms. He traced the causes and devised methods
of combating the diseases. His investigations enabled the silkworm
industry to recover from the disaster and thrive once more.

Netherlands P96 50 gulden with Honeybee on sunflower on obverse and

as watermark

Detail of Honeybee on sunflower on obverse

The Swedish 100-kronor note of 1986 (P57) celebrates one

of Swedens greatest national figures Carolus Linnaeus (later
ennobled as Carl von Linn). It was Linnaeus who, in the 1750s,
devised the binomial system of scientific nomenclature for animals
and plants, which has been in use ever since.
The following information is taken from the Sveriges Riksbanks
official description of the note. The obverse of the note shows a
portrait of Linnaeus, a sketch of his garden in Uppsala, and sketches
of pollinating plants taken from Linnaeus work in 1729.
On the reverse is a Honeybee pollinating a flower. The drawing
is based on a photograph by the Swedish photographer, Lennart
Nilsson. The background consists of stylised pictures from the
fertilisation of a flower. At the lower centre right, is a pattern of
hexagons, representing a reconstruction of how a flower looks
through the multifaceted eyes of a bee.
In 2001, the note was re-issued (P64) with colour changes,
minor design changes and the addition of a hologram strip at the
left on the obverse.

26

France P145 5 francs with Silkworm Caterpillars and Moths at upper and
lower right

Detail of Silkworm Caterpillars and Moths at lower right on obverse

Desert Locust (Schistocerca gregaria)

In 1989, Cape Verde issued a 1000-escudos note (P60) with a
portrait of Amlcar Cabral on the obverse and two Desert Locusts
on the reverse. Another 1000-escudos note (P65) was issued in
1992 with the same Locusts on the reverse but a Cape Verde
Warbler on the obverse. These two notes are to remind people of
the threat posed by the Desert Locust to the Republics economy.
The Republic of Cape Verde is a group of small islands situated
385 miles (500 kilometres) off the west coast of Africa. The islands
are vulnerable to swarms of Desert Locusts blown out to sea

IBNS Journal 47.4

from the African continent. Such swarms occur every few years,
when large populations of Locusts become crowded together with
diminishing food supplies. Invasions of Desert Locust swarms
strip the countryside of all vegetation and often cause agricultural
disaster and famine in affected areas.
The Desert Locust occurs in two distinct forms, a smaller
solitary form, and a larger gregarious form. The solitary-form
Locusts are scattered and harmless; while the gregarious form
masses into the huge devastating swarms.
The two Locusts on the notes clearly illustrate these two forms;
the larger one with the outstretched wings is the gregarious form,
while the smaller Locust in the sitting position is the solitary form.
The insects scientific name is printed in small type between the
larger Locusts abdomen and hind leg.

where it contributes to the breakdown of vegetable debris. Their

population density may reach many thousands per square metre.
Thus these mites contribute greatly to the fertility of soils and
hence to the success of agriculture.
Oribatid mites are also known as Box Mites. They are so called
because they are able to withdraw their legs and mouthparts and
jack-knife the anterior part of their body against the posterior to
present a closed box to a predator.

Australia P47 50 dollars with Small Fruit Fly and Oribatid Mite on reverse

Cape Verde P60 1000 escudos with Desert Locusts on reverse

Detail of small Locust

Small Fruit Fly (Drosophila melanogaster)

Oribatid Mite (Family Oribatidae)
These two invertebrates appear on the 1973 50-dollar note of
Australia (P47). This note commemorates two of Australias most
famous scientists. Sir Walter Howard Florey, later Lord Florey,
was a distinguished medical pathologist and the montage on the
obverse of the note celebrates some of his many achievements.
The reverse honours Sir Ian Clunies Ross, a noted veterinarian,
who embarked on much research under the auspices of the
Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR). The
montage illustrates the breadth of Ross researches. Lurking in
a hexagon in a clump of wheat at the lower right is a small twowinged fly. The official description of the note by the Reserve
Bank of Australia states: Drosophila melanogaster. A fly used by
geneticists for cross-fertilisation. As it is sheltering in a clump of
wheat, it may represent the value of genetics in developing better
strains of cereal crops.
This Small Fruit Fly is very common worldwide and is readily
attracted to rotting fruit. It has a very short life cycle and has only
four pairs of very large chromosomes, which are easily seen under
the microscope. The flies are very easy to work with and they have
proved invaluable in countless chromosome and genetic studies.
Close by the clump of wheat mentioned above sits an almost
globular Oribatid Mite, known also as a Box Mite. The official
description of the note by the Reserve Bank of Australia states:
Oribatid mite. The oribatid mite forms a major component of
the fauna of the surface soil and the litter of pastures and forests

IBNS Journal 47.4

Detail of Small Fruit Fly on reverse

Detail of Oribatid Mite on reverse

There is just one insect of medical significance that is portrayed

on a banknote.
Barber Bug (Triatoma infestans)
Carlos Chagas was one of Brazils most famous doctors and was
responsible for the discovery of the disease that now bears his
name. The Banco Central do Brasil decided to commemorate his
achievement by issuing a 10,000-cruzado note in 1989 (P215).
Rampant inflation in the country necessitated the revaluing of the
currency, and the note was re-issued in the same year with a triangular
overprint stating a new value of 10 cruzados novos (P218).
The obverse of the note depicts a portrait of the handsome
Carlos Chagas at the right, while in the centre is a vignette that
includes a cross section of a Barber Bug. This beautifully-drawn
illustration perfectly encapsulates the life cycle of the causative
organism of Chagas Disease a trypanosome parasite called
Trypanosoma cruzi.
The bug is shown sitting on the skin of the victim (which is
usually the face or neck hence the popular name of the insect).
The bugs proboscis pierces the skin to suck up blood from a
blood vessel blood that contains parasites, which are then seen
developing in the bugs gut. A faecal pellet containing a parasite is
seen on the skin next to a bite hole. This pellet is rubbed into the
bite hole by the victim, who feels an itch there. The parasite then
circulates in the blood stream before entering either a gut nerve
cell or heart muscle.
The effects of the disease are insidious in onset, but eventually lead
to chronic malfunction of the heart, the gullet and intestines. Chagas
Disease causes much misery and loss of work for its many victims.

27

The Devils Workshop

Operation Bernhardthe Story of the Biggest Banknote

Counterfeiting Scheme Ever Devised
Stefano Poddi

he calm and monotonous voice disguised a real and intense

agitation. Hansch was on the phone. A young SS Lieutenant
in charge of a convoy of vital importance to the Reich,
the contents of which was so secret Hansch was not free to discuss
it, even with Wilhelm Hoettl, a member of the SS Secret Services
and officer in charge of the Balkan area, at the other end of the
telephone. Hoettl had answered the call from the head of the Nazi
Department of Security (RSHA), Ernst Kaltenbrunners office.
The lieutenant reported that a little after leaving Redl-Zipf, a
small town close to Salisburgh in Austria, he had difficulties with
two trucks. One broke an axle, while the other had slipped from
the road on to the bank of the Traun River, where it was stuck
in the gravel. Hansch was requesting replacements for the two
vehicles, but when it became clear he would not get them, he
asked permission to deliver one of the cargos to a nearby unit of
the Wehrmacht (the German army), while the cargo of the second
truck was moved to other vehicles in the convoy. Hoettl replied
irritably: Throw the cargo into the Traun and send your men home
The Third Reich was close to defeat and a few people, like
Hoettl, realized it was futile to continue resisting.
The order seemed strange and incomprehensible to the
lieutenant, but he was used to obeying without objection. He
consigned part of the cargo to a captain in the Wehrmacht and
ordered the remaining boxes be thrown into the river. A few
days later, Lieutenant Hansch was ordered to get rid of the cargo
previously saved.
This was how boxes full of counterfeit pounds, typographic
plates and the secret archives of Operation Bernhard came to
be disposed of in the rivers Traun and Enns and Lake Toplitz-see
near Salisburgh. The counterfeit banknotes had been printed
by prisoners of the Sachsenhausen concentration camp in
Oranienburg, 22 miles (36 kms) north of Berlin, in Block 19,
where 137 deported Jews from 13 different countries had been
gathered. Each had specific skills: typographers, illustrators,
painters, retouchers, chemists, engravers, pressmen, bookbinders,
bank workers, forgers, and others.
Only by presenting events in chronological order is it
possible to understand the story behind the biggest banknote
counterfeiting operation ever undertaken, involving the
production of a huge amount of high-quality fake banknotes,
coupled with a systematic and methodical sales strategy to
circulate the bogus currency.
War incorporates many aspects, one being the weakening and
possibly the destruction of an enemys economy by inducing
inflation and undermining the international reputation of its
currency. Soon after World War II started, the British smuggled a
large number of ration cards into Germany to disrupt the German
supply system, causing trouble and instilling in Nazi Alfred
Helmut Naujocks an intense desire for revenge.
Naujocks was close to the Fuehrer. He was the Nazi who led
the attack on the German radio station in Gliewitz, pretending to
be Polish, and giving the Germans the pretext for the invasion of
Poland and the initiation of World War II.
In 1939, Naujocks proposed to Reinhard Tristan Heydrich,
who was responsible for RSHA, the concept of producing
counterfeit banknotes and introducing them into Great Britain
IBNS Journal 47.4

in quantities sufficient to undermine British economic stability.

Impressed, Heydrich presented a memorandum of Naujocks
plot to Hitler, who unexpectedly approved it, although excluding
the production of counterfeit U.S. dollars. Hitler annotated on
the document: No dollars. We are not at war with the U.S.A.
In fact, the United States entered the war two years later on 8
December 1941, following the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor.
Having obtained Hitlers approval, Heydrich initiated the
plot, the aim of which was, not imitating English currency
as well as possible, but producing banknotes exactly like the
originals, the only difference being they were not authorized by
the British Government. Operation Andreas, the first Nazi
Secret Service counterfeiting plot, started in a building located
in Delbrueckstrasse, Charlotteberg, south of Berlin, which had
originally been used to produce high-quality, forged Swiss and
Swedish passports.
SS Major Heydrich was also in charge of a luxury brothel
called Salon Kitty, a club exclusively for Nazi officers and other
important persons among Germanys allies. These persons were
often photographed in compromising situations for later use
if needed. Among the regular customers were Galeazzo Ciano,
Mussolinis son-in-law, and Hiroshi Oshima, the Japanese
Ambassador in Berlin.
Preparations for counterfeiting English banknotes were
meticulous. Authentic five-pound banknotes were procured, cut
up and sent to different universities to be scientifically examined.
The results were disappointing. They agreed only on a single
detail: the paper used was made from linen rags and not, as
originally suspected, of some kind of exotic cellulose extracted
from rare trees.
Examined under a microscope, paper produced from linen rags
looked exactly like English-made paper, but under a quartz lamp,
German paper appeared pale and opaque in contrast to the vivid,
bright colors of the English original paper.
After many tests the Germans found that linen produced by
German textile factories was not pureforcing the plotters to
import several tons of high-quality linen from neutral Turkey.
Turkish linen paper fluoresced almost identically with English
paper under a quartz lamp, but placed under an ultraviolet lamp,
the new linen paper acquired a white luminosity with a lilac
nuance, again identifying the paper as being slightly different.
A number of further experiments were needed before the Nazis
realized the paper used for pound notes was composed of washed,
second-hand linen rags. To duplicate the effect, Turkish linen was
cut into cleaning cloths, distributed among different offices, then
recollected, thoroughly washed, redistributed once more, used,
recollected and washed again. This time, the result was excellent.
The Germans later concluded the English linen banknote paper
was most likely made from used cloth mail bags. They also
found two German companies, Spechthausen in Eberswalde,
near Berlin, and Schleicher & Schuell in Hahnemuele, near
Hannover, produced similar paper. Development and production
of the watermarkthe most difficult part of the processwas
accomplished by a group of 20 researchers under the direction of
Wilhelm Frank in the Spechthausen paper plant.

29

Table 1 The number and value of counterfeit

notes produced under Operation Bernhard.
Denominations Printed

Value

3,945,867

17,729,335

10 Pounds

2,398,981

23,989,810

20 Pounds

1,337,335

26,746,700

50 Pounds

1,282,902

64,145,100

Totals

8,965,085

132,610,945

5 Pounds

Table 2 The signatures and serial numbers

of counterfeit notes.
Denominations Chief Cashier of the Serials and Numbers
Bank of England
5 Sterling

Plan of Blocks 18 and 19 of Sachsenhausen concentration camp.

Typographic plates for printing were prepared under the threat

of death, by Gerhard Kreische, one of Germanys most skilled
engravers, in August Petricks private typography shop.
The banknotes required at least two print runsthe serial
number being added on the second printing. Operation Andreas
produced banknotes in six denominations: 5, 10, 20, 50,
100 and 500. The 5 banknotes, however, required three
printings, since the word Five at the bottom left had to be
printed separately using a special black ink.
In March 1941, samples of these banknotes were sent to
Switzerland accompanied by a fake letter from the Reichsbank
section charged with checking counterfeit currency requesting an
opinion on the authenticity of the attached banknotes. The Swiss
reply confirmed the authenticity of the entire sample.
Naujocks also had a number of banknotes from the sample
sent to the Bank of England in London, which after three days
replied that about 90% were counterfeit. In only 18 months,
Operation Andreas produced 500,000 in counterfeit banknotes.
Although only 10% of the banknotes had passed all tests,
Operation Andreas proved the production of almost perfect
counterfeit pounds was possible.
According to an intercepted conversation between Heydrich
and Kitty of Salon Kitty, Naujocks was falling victim to the type
of envy which often develops among rivals operating in the same
environment. Heydrich pushed Naujocks aside by organizingat
his own expensean illicit trade in gold and transferring Naujocks
to another office, along with other key officers employed in the
counterfeiting plot. Operation Andreas was abandoned.

30

Peppiatt

A128-A275, A281-A314,
A317-A398, B105-B131,
B134-B182, B186-B237,
B256-B279, J373-J377

10 Sterling

Peppiatt, Catterns,
and Mahon

K102-K184, K187-K199,
L100-L107, V105-V153,
V163-V170

20 Sterling

Catterns and
Peppiatt

M43-M55

50 Sterling

Catterns and
Peppiatt

N42-N61

After a years interruption, in August 1942, the counterfeiting

plot was revived, again with SS Major Bernhard Kruger in
charge. The new operation was code named Operation Bernhard,
after Bernhard Kruger, who previously headed a workshop
producing forged passports. Kruger had all the skills needed for
counterfeiting British currency.
Kruger realized he would need specifically skilled men to meet
the exacting requirements of the new operation. He ordered SS
Colonel Hermann Doerner to make a list of 28 Papierfachleute
(paper specialists) from among prisoners held in concentration
camps. Doerner brought the first group of skilled Jewish prisoners
together in the Orainienburg concentration camp, and then, on 23
August 1942, moved them to the nearby Sachsenhausen Camp.
Producing and using counterfeit banknotes can be divided
into three phases: an analysis of every banknote detail, accurately
reproducing banknotes and the efficient circulation of the
counterfeit currency.
Phase 1 the longest and most complicated. Includes
analyzing the paper, the imprinted watermark, the
printing processes employed, the ink used and the
numeric code linking date, prefix, serial number,
watermark numbers and signatures.
Phase 2 the most practical and operational. Involves
production of the paper, the printing of the
banknotes, classifying the banknotes according
to quality and, finally, the artificial aging of the
banknotes.

IBNS Journal 47.4

Phase 3 is organizational and mostly commercial. It includes

passing the validation test of the best banking houses
in Europe and the creation of a complex, efficient
network of agents able to discreetly distribute as
much of the counterfeit money as possible into
commercial markets.
Phase 1 focused on the paper used to print the Bank of
Englands White Notes. The paper, as the analyses from the
German universities had shown, was composed of pure linen
cloth, unraveled and frayed, without added cellulose. The paper
had to be handmade, a special process usually reserved for highquality, limited production.
During production, the Germans realized their papers white
hue still varied slightly from that of genuine British banknotes,
due to elements in the water used by the English. They learned
the Portal family from Laverstoke had controlled the paper
supply used for Bank of England banknotes since 1725, utilizing
water obtained from Hull. The Germans chemically altered the
composition of their sources to match that of English water.
Paper was manufactured from pulp carefully monitored
chemically in tubs two or three meters wide, under temperature
and humidity checks monitored hourly. A blender maintained the
correct consistency of the pulp. At full production, about 12,000
sheets of paper a month was produced and shipped from the
Spechthausen factory to the Sachsenhausen concentration camp.
To manufacture paper, the workers took their pulp mixture
from tubs using a loom frame with an attached delicate matrix
essential to obtain the precision needed for the addition of the
so-called water drawinga high-quality, shaded watermark.
The pulp collected on the loom was evenly spread on one-squaremeter felt pads. Pulp and felt were next stacked one-upon-theother, until layers of 20 sheets were formed. Each layer was then
pressed by a machine to eliminate excess moisture. At this point,
the paper sheets, although still damp, could be handled without
breaking. The pressed sheets next went into a dryer for four to six
days, followed by a final pressing in a hand press. The paper was
now ready for printing.
The type of ink used for printing was the so-called Frankfort
Black Ink, extracted from charcoal made from grapes boiled in
linen oil. Ironically, the best grapes for this type of ink came from
vines grown in Germany. For this reason, Gebrueder Schmindt of
Berlin was able to provide an ink almost exactly like the ink used
by the Bank of England.

A five-pound counterfeit note.

IBNS Journal 47.4

Printing plates were obtained from August Petricks shop in Berlin.

These plates were carefully examined after every 100 sheets printed.
Like the English originals, banknote plates were hand engraved.
To appear authentic, serial numbers and letters, dates,
signatures and the numbers relation to watermark details
on the counterfeit banknotes had to be exactly like those on
genuine banknotes. Large numbers of original banknotes were
examined, with dates of issue covering a period of about 20
years. Each specific variable was associated with each date. Over
350 combinations were found. In reality, the Bank of England
employed an algorithm linking dates, signatures, serial numbers,
and the number of the banknote with a code imprinted in the
watermark. A team of German mathematicians managed, at
least partially, to decrypt it. According to some theories, the
Germans might have been secretly helped by a clerk in the Bank
of England. It was not until 1986 that two English banknote
collectors, Ian Fraser and Trevor Jones, after years of studying
5 notes, were able to explain the method used by the Bank of
England to link together all the different variables.
Since it was impractical to prepare a plate for each date of issue,
interchangeable lines were developed for printing dates, prefix serial
numbers and signatures. To match the combinations needed, about
400 strips were prepared to be inserted into printing plates.
In the history of the Bank of England since its foundation in
1694, the Bank has had 23 Chief Cashiers. The counterfeiters
used the signatures of three of them:
Cyril Patrick Mahon, Chief Cashier from 4 April 1925 to
26 March 1929;
Basil Gage Catterns, Chief Cashier from 27 March 1929 to
17 April 1934; and
Dennis Oswald Peppiatt, Chief Cashier from 18 April 1934
to 22 February 1949.
Incorporating more than 150 different secret security devices and
features on printing plates to match those the Bank of England used
to check the authenticity of its banknotes was a major problem for
the counterfeiters. For example, there is a small indentation at the
base of the letter f in the inscription Comp.a of the Bank, and a
small white point in the middle of the letter i in Five.
Of the counterfeits printed, 5 notes accounted for
approximately 44% of the entire amount producedabout
99 million pieces, worth 132 million; 10 notes totaled 27%

A genuine ten-pound note.

31

of production; 20 notes 15%; and 50 notes only 14%. The

printing press used was a Victoria-Tiegel, Type 4, which arrived
in Block 19 in December 1942. It was connected to a diesel
generator in case of electrical grid failure. Between the end of
1943 and the beginning of 1944, Block 18 was amalgamated with
Block 19 to improve internal logistics and increase the production
of counterfeit banknotes.
At first, four banknotes were printed on each sheet of paper,
but to improve efficiency, this was increased to eight impressions
per sheet. After printing, the banknotes were divided into packs
of one thousand pieces, and banded with the denomination, serial
number, prefix, watermark numbers, the number of pieces, date
and the name of the prisoner in charge of production at the time
of printing.
By 1943, Sachsenhausen was producing about 400,000
banknotes per month. Once the banknotes were printed, they
were classified to minimize risks associated with putting them
into circulation. Every prisoner in charge of a team had a machine
with a luminescent, transparent window, where each counterfeit bill
could be inserted for comparison with an authentic banknote. Newly
printed counterfeit banknotes were graded into four usable classes,
plus one composed of rejects which were recycled back to pulp.
Class I: Banknotes with no imperfections. Used to make
purchases in neutral countries.
Class II: Banknotes with no more than one minor
imperfection. Used to pay collaborators operating in neutral
countries.
Class III: Banknotes with more than one minor
imperfection. Used for purchases and to pay agents operating
in occupied countries.
Class IV: Banknotes with one major imperfection; deemed
unusable for transactions. Dropped over England from
German airplanes.
Class V: banknotes with more than one major imperfection,
used exclusively to make new pulp.

For example, 300,000 counterfeit pounds of Class II banknotes

were used to pay the famous spy Elyesa Bazna (known as Cicero),
who was the personal servant of Sir Hughe Knatchbull-Hugessen,
the English Ambassador to Turkey.
Once they had been graded, the packs of banknotes were
assembled according to their classification, but with diverse serial
numbers and dates to make them look like normal groupings of
authentic English banknotes. The classifiers, under the direction
of prisoner Oskar Skala (Stein), worked slowly and meticulously,
each prisoner classifying about 300 pieces per day. The job was
difficult and dangerous, especially when their eyes were tired, and
could easily lead to mistakes.
In order not to attract attention, banknotes had to appear used.
The printing ink, which contained linseed oil spread easilyeven
on the best quality papercausing the letters to lose their initial
sharpness. Adding chemical substances to the ink enhanced its
penetration into the paper, also giving the banknotes a used
appearance.
To further age the banknotes, workers were lined up and each
given a specific task. Some creased the banknotes, some folded
them as if they had been in a wallet, some notched them and
punched them, and some wrote English words or numbersas
bank cashiers often didto the top banknote to indicate the total
amount in a pack.
Pinholes were crucial since the dimensions of the White Notes
precluded using a strip of paper to bind them together. It took
only twenty-five 5 banknotesthe lowest denominationto
equal to 125, equal to six months wages, a considerable amount
of money at the time. Holding banknotes together or attaching
them to a document with a pin had been a common practice
for more than a century. In fact, most banknotes in circulation
acquired more than one pinhole after a short time.
In an attempt to signal the counterfeiting, the prisoners
often placed pinholes in the medallion representing the figure of
Britannia, believing no British person would have done such an
outrageous deed. Under the Romans, Britannia was the ancient

Differences between original and

counterfeit pounds
There are a few differences between authentic and counterfeit
pounds relating to paper, watermarks and printing. These
differences can be found only by means of a careful and
scrupulous examination, and by comparing the counterfeit
banknotes with an original, which normally never happens
in a standard economic transaction. According to some
sources, there are 28 differences, but in this article only the
most evident and most used among collectors, scholars and
merchants will be described.
1. In the watermark, the triangle at the bottom of the
first N in the word ENGLAND in BANK OF
ENGLAND is intersected by a line which originates
from the centre of the triangle in the fake notes, and from
the left half at the bottom of the triangle in originals.
2. The writing BANK OF ENGLAND in the watermark
presents some maladjusted letters in the counterfeit banknotes.

32

3. The quality of the paper is often better in the counterfeit

banknotes.
4. The watermark is clearer in the counterfeit banknotes.
5. The paper in new notes appears whiter in the counterfeit
banknotes than in the originals.
6. The medallion representing Britannia on the top left is
almost three dimensional in the originals, and the drape
next to the bottom of the lance is much more detailed.
Other differences, compiled over the years, are detailed
in various lists of the banknotes counterfeited by the
Nazis. However, none of these methods is absolute. Every
collector, scholar or merchant seems to have their own way
of distinguishing authentic from counterfeit notes, based on
differing combinations of factors and practical experience.

IBNS Journal 47.4

A ten-pound note produced by the Germans.

A counterfeit twenty-pound note.

Latin name for the British Isles, which included Albion (Great
Britain), Hibernia (Ireland), and many other associated smaller
islands. Later, Britannia became a personification of Great Britain
One more improvement to the ageing process was cutting a
small notch in the right edge of banknotes at standard points to
indicate a notes denominationa method commonly used by
bank clerks so they could recognize the value of a banknote simply
by looking at its edgean upper cut for 5, a bit lower for 10, a
middle cut for 20, and a cut on the lower half for 50 notes.
In addition to imitating banknotes issued by the central
Bank of England in London, banknotes from branches in
Bristol, Birmingham, Leeds, Liverpool and Manchester were also
counterfeited, although in a lesser amounts. Once the banknotes
had been meticulously examined and perfectly reproduced,
they had to be changed for valuable goods and currency. To
do this, the Nazis called on Friedrich Schwend, a successful
international trader of Austrian origins. A very cultivated person
with remarkable financial skills, Schwend, after many interviews,
convinced the Germans that funding the German Secret Services
using the income earned from the counterfeiting plot would be
much more productive than throwing counterfeit banknotes out
of airplanes over Great Britain.
Schwend organized a widespread network of agents, who were
ordered to buy currency, gold, silver and jewels with counterfeit
money. Schwend was remunerated with 33.3% of the value of
the banknotes. From this, he paid his agents 26% of the value
of placed banknotes. With the remaining 7.3%, he paid for
transport, banknotes storage and security for his agents. He
also bought off officials and maintained boatsthe Genoa, the
Triesteand a yacht called Aurora.
Schwends agents were basically bank clerks in Italy and
Switzerland, and hotel managers or owners in Sweden,
Switzerland, Portugal and Spain. His extended network also
employed well-placed traders living in every European country.
A typical transaction in Italy might proceed this way: fake
banknotes were changed for Prime Minister Badoglios liras or for
the liras of Mussolinis Repubblica Sociale Italiana puppet state,
then converted to liras of the Southern Region or to gold and
jewels. Jewels were transferred to Switzerland where they were
used to buy Swiss francs, US dollars or Swedish kronas. Trade in
pounds was forbidden, since they could be the counterfeit and,
moreover, their value would anomalously increase the amount of
pounds held by Germany.

Schwends position was delicate and dangerous; the allies

agents were eager to capture him, and even among the Nazis
feelings of envy started to develop due to his success and his
relationships with the upper echelons of the Nazi party. This came
to a head when Heinrich Mueller, commander of the Gestapo,
produced evidence Schwend had been born Jewish and was
married to a Jew. Schwend countered with documents attesting he
was purely Arian. In any case, as Kaltenbrunnerin charge of SS
Secret Services pointed out, if Jews could produce counterfeit
banknotes in Sachsenhausen, why couldnt Jews sell them?
Schwend had established his headquarters in Labers Castle
near Merano in Tirolo, where he received the packs of forged
banknotes to be sold. When the majority of banknotes delivered
to him were Class III, he realized the war would not end happily
for the Nazis.
Soon other international traders wanted to participate in the
plotconsidering it a source of easy profits. Galeazzo Ciano, for
example, asked for 100,000 to sell in South America. He did not
have a good reputation, and providing him with such an amount
of money, although fake, was risky. Still, the Germans could not
refuse considering his involvement with il Duces family. In fact,
Cianos story ended with his execution in January 1944 in Verona,
after he was sentenced to death for conspiracy against Mussolini
in the Castelvecchio Trial.
In August 1944, due to a change in government, Turkey ceased
being neutral. Suddenly, Turkish linen was no longer available to
Germany, forcing the paper factories supplying paper to Kruger
to use lower-quality cloth for its manufacture. As a result, the
banknotes produced from the paper did not pass ultraviolet light
tests. In response, Kruger and his cohorts looked to the feasibility
of counterfeiting U.S. dollars. In December 1944, the fabrication
of fake dollars began.
Only four prisoners were put in charge of this operation. They
printed the U.S. banknotes by means of a light technique,
which consisted of stacking twenty-four negatives on a glass plate
covered with a special gelatinous emulsion. Abraham Jacobson,
a Jewish-Dutch chemist, sabotaged the composition of the
gelatinous emulsion, causing the prints to appear rough and
rendering the notes useless.

IBNS Journal 47.4

33

Interview with Adolf Burger

Adolf Burger is the only survivor of Operation Bernhard. He
celebrated his 90th birthday in 2007 and, despite his age, is
a solid and determined man. We met with him in his house
in Sporilov, a quarter of Prague characterized by diversified
urbanizationhigh anonymous buildings and detached
houses. Burger talked about his story in the book Des Teufels
Werkstatt (The Devils Workshop), which has been recently
translated into Czech (Dablova Dilna). The book is full of
pictures, tables and documents collected during three years of
research and travel. Burger says: you can write volumes and
volumes, but to make people believe you, there must (also) be some
clear evidence such as pictures and documents.
When in 1972, Burger learned of attempts to deny the
Holocaust, he organized meetings and conferences all over
the world to verify, with his own presence, documents and
pictureswhich he always carries with himthat the horror
of the Nazi dictatorship was real and that it took place in a
civilized Europe just over 60 years ago. Burger often visits
Germany and other countries. When we saw him, he had just
come back from Japan where he held a series of conferences.
He is a kind of globetrotter in the name of truth.
During the interview, we got to know the different phases
of Burgers story: he was born on 12 August 1917 in Velka
Lominca, a village in the High Tatras in Slovakia. He worked
as a typographer in Bratislava and produced fake certificates
of baptism to save Jews from deportation. He was arrested by
the Nazis and deported to concentration camps in Auschwitz,
Birkenau, Sachsenhausen, Redl-Zipf and finally Ebensee,
where he was saved by the Americans on 6 May 1945.
Berger shows
us, almost
proudly, number
64401, tattooed
on his left
forearm by the
Nazis on 12
September 1942,
when he was
in Birkenau.
Here he was
subjected to Dr
Josef Mengeles
experiments,
one giving him
a temperature
of more than
107.6F (42C),
almost killing
him. In Birkenau, Adolf Burger shows his Nazi tattoo.
after 18 months
of detention, during an evening roll call, he was singled out by
the camp commander, Rudlolf Franz Hess, to appear before
him the following morning. Burger could not sleep that night,
thinking his moment had come. Surviving in Birkenau was
almost impossible, but Burger did not know his salvation
would stem from this event.
The following day Hess turned to him and surprisingly
called him by name: You are Mr Adolf Burger, arent you?
I amAre you a typographer?Yes, I amWe need
you in Berlin then.

34

Meanwhile the Nazis were gathering a group of prisoners

from other campsexperts in paper manufacturing to be
moved to Sachsenhausen concentration camp, Block 19,
to produce counterfeit British banknotes. The film The
Counterfeiters was based on Burgers book. Burger helped
as a consultant with no remuneration, but on condition he
be permitted to supervise every part of the script, which he
wanted, as the
sole survivor,
to be loyal to
the historical
events he had
witnessed. In
fact, the first
draft of the
script diverged
in some details
from reality.
Although they
might have
been more
spectacular,
they were
totally untrue.
According
to the initial
script, millions
Adolf Burger displays Operation Bernhard notes in
of fake U.S.
his possession.
dollars had
been produced, while in reality only 200 pieces were made.
The script also had prisoners freed by the Russians, when it
had been the Americans who had rescued them from Ebensee.
It also gave the Nazis some credits, such as portraying them
awarding Crosses of War or Medals of Merit to Block 19
prisoners, which was totally false.
This last matter, which confers some sense of Nazi
humanity towards the Jewish prisoners involved in the plot,
first appeared in a book written in 1956 by Wilhelm Hoettl
under the pseudonym of Walter Hagenand reappeared
again in other works. The story turns out to be completely
made up. Burger strongly denounced Hoettl, who died before
his trial started, charging him with presenting false evidence.
The interview continued with the narration of Burgers
meeting with Salomon Smolinoff, a Russian Jew who was a
professional counterfeiter and had been previously detained
in German prisons because of his illegal activities. Smolinoff
was brought to Sachsenhausen as a common prisoner and was
shunned by the political prisoners. Unlike the others, Burger
became his friend: He was a real counterfeiter: he could retouch
the negatives used to produce banknotes instead of positives like a
common forger does
While speaking, Burger showed us a portrait Smolinoff had
made of him (Burger). Then he took some of the fake banknotes
produced in Sachsenhausen and held them up to the light to
check if there were pinholes were in the Britannia medallion.
Burger emphasized Operation Bernhard had to be kept
absolutely secret. Shack 19 and later Block 18 were isolated
from the rest of the camp by a triple barbed-wire fence
connected to a high voltage electric line. Furthermore, when
one of the prisoners fell ill, even if not seriously; to avoid
any possible leak of information, he was directly eliminated
without going to the infirmary.

IBNS Journal 47.4

An Operation Bernhard fifty-pound note.

A counterfeit ten-pound note domiciled on Leeds.

Despite repeated efforts, and after many threats to the

counterfeiters lives if they did not produce high-quality dollars
in five weeks, production only amounted to two-hundred $100
banknotes, equivalent to $20,000 being printed, which Kruger took
with him when he escaped. The day after, they were scheduled to
have printed one million banknotes, but instead, were ordered to
dismantle everything and crate it in wooden boxes. By now, the
Russians were about a hundred miles from Berlin.
The prisoners in charge of counterfeiting played such an
important role in the war, the Nazis provided them with the best
comforts: clean and decent accommodation, access to a radio,
newspapers, mail and even a ping-pong table. Nevertheless, their
fate was settledknowing about the counterfeiting plot sentenced
them to almost certain death.
Events, however, took a different and unexpected turn: the
allies scored a series of victories. In the summer of 1944, the
Russians destroyed the central German army and began to push
into Berlin.
Manteuffel, one of the most audacious among the Nazi mobile
troop commanders, recalls the event like this: The advance of a
Russian army is something that an Occidental cannot even imagine.
(The) mounted infantrydoes not depend on suppliesthe soldier
carried on his back a sack where he had nothing but dry bread crusts
and what he had collected in the villages he had passed through
mainly some raw vegetables. Horses were fed on straw taken from roofs.
In spite of the Russians remarkable advance, Nazi resistance
under Hitlers orders was such that the Russians did not manage
to take Berlin until May 1945.
The Nazis resisted not only on the war front, but also
continued to control their prisoners. On 26 February 1945 the
prisoners were moved from the Sachsenhausen concentration
camp in Germany to an Austrian camp in Mauthausena
distance of almost five hundred miles (800 kms)and after about
a month on to Redl-Zipf and finally to Ebensee. In the Ebensee
concentration campabandoned by the defeated Nazisthe
prisoners were set free by the Americans on 6 May 1945.

BIBLIOGRAPHY
Burger, Adolf, Des Teufels Werkstatt: Geldfalscherwerkstatt im
Sachsenhausen, Nues Leben, Berlin, 2007;
Burke, Bryan, Nazi Counterfeiting of British Currency during World
War II: Operation Andrew and Operation Bernhard, The Book
Shop, USA, 1987;
Byatt, Derrick, Promises to Pay, Spink, London, 1994;
Girelli, Gian Paolo, Falsario e testimone, Rai 3, Estovest, February
3rd and 10th 2007 episodes;
Mayer, Joseph e Sem Julius, Report on forgery in Sachsenhausen
concentration camp, Czechoslovak Ministry of Interior, Prague,
1945, Joegen Somod, Copenhagen, 1981;
Markin, Lawrence, Kruegers Men: The Secret Nazi Counterfeit Plot
and the Prisoner of Block 19, Little, Brown and Company, USA,
2006;
McNally, George J., Report, January 24th 1946, [Link]
[Link]/[Link]

IBNS Journal 47.4

AKNOWLEDGMENTS
First of all I would like to thank my mentor Guido Crapanzano
for teaching me determination and rigor in investigation and
research and for giving me the stimulus and useful advice needed
to proceed in paper money studies. Furthermore, I want to thank
friends, merchants, numismatists and scholarsWalter Nasi,
Franco Spinelli, Ian Gradon, Pam West, Yasha Beresiner, Colin
and Simon Narberth, Lawrence Malkin and John Keyworthfor
their help and infinite patience.
This article was first published in the Italian numismatic
monthly review CN Cronaca Numismatica, Number 204,
February 2008. It is rewritten here in English with the kind
permission of the publisher.
The author can be contacted at poddiste@[Link] or
[Link]

35

Wanted to Purchase

Hong Kong

Macau

China Foreign Banks

China

Rare banknotes from Hong Kong, in particular prior to 1900.

Macau, particularly notes of the first issue by Barclay & Fry 1905-1941.
China foreign banks, particularly proofs, specimens, and issued notes prior to 1900.
China, scarce and rare notes from all government, provincial, and local banks.
Please contact us, or meet us at the New York International in January, the London IBNS
Congress in October, or at auctions in Hong Kong, Singapore, and Beijing, or elsewhere.

William Barrett
wbarrett@[Link]

Box 9 Victoria Station

Montreal, Quebec, CANADA H3Z 2V4
TEL: 514-937-4131 FAX: 514-937-8075

Serial Numbers of Operations

Bernhard and Andrew
Pam West LM-79

he tables on the following pages constitute all logged

prefixes of forged Operation Bernhard, white, Bank of
England, five-, ten-, twenty-, fifty-, and one-hundredpound notes. These notes are dated between 20 March 1930 and
16 September 1938, with one odd date of 24 December 1926.
Mahon, Catterns and Peppiatt signatures were utilised.
Anomalies exist where some notes are known to have the wrong
signature and date. For example, the 50-pound note with prefix
42N, signed by Peppiatt, dated 20 March 1930, is obviously
faulty as Peppiatt did not take office until 1934.
Within the notes prepared by Operation Bernhard, branch
banknotes from Leeds, Manchester, Liverpool, Birmingham and
Bristol are known.
Bernhard notes, as they are commonly called, were produced
by approximately 150 volunteers, who were in fact, Polish and
Jewish prisoners in Block 19 of Sachsenhausen concentration
camp. The Nazis produced vast quantities of counterfeit English
banknotes, overseen by Staatssckreiner (Chief of Police of the
General Government) Friederich Walter Bernhard Krueger. The
Nazis wanted to undermine the British economy by airdropping
the notes over Britain, but abandoned this idea in favour of the
more subtle approach of buying goods and materials in neutral
countries, and by paying their spies and agents, the most notable
spy being Cicero. In 1945, the Nazis tried to hide the evidence of
Operation Bernhard in the Enns River, the Traun River and Lake
Toplitzsee, the latter is from where many of the notes in todays
collections were recovered.
The approximate value of the white five-pound forgeries alone
was 1,337,325 but it is not known how many were recovered.
For collectors seeking to assemble a collection of Bernhard
notes, it is worth noting that the 5 Catterns does not exist as
a Bernhard note. Also, Derek Byatts book Promises to Pay states
500-pound Peppiatt notes were forged, but this claim is doubted.
Finally, some of the notes are known to have FALSIFICATION
stamped on them.

The detail of the vignette is poor under magnification, especially in the eyes.

The right-hand edge of the hook at the bottom right of the medallion has
no engraved line going upwards into the design; amongst several other
fine differences. (At left is the forgery and at right is a genuine note.)

How to identify a Bernhard forgery

INTRODUCTION TO TABLES
Only the first two digits of the serial numbers are listed in the
following tables as all forgeries of a particular date share the
same features in common. The Germans employed this practice
to economize efforts when working on metal plates rather than
creating genuinely unique serial numbers. Note that genuine
notes exist for all dates in the tables, so checking the date alone is
insufficient for determining if a note is counterfeit.

The black circles around the TEN should all be even. As can be seen in
the picture above, the circles in the corners are malformed; especially the
bottom corner between the T & E and the bottom right indent of the N.

IBNS Journal 47.4

An example of the serial number used on the White notes.

37

The table columns are: (Note) Prefix; e.g. K 104. Date (as on note); e.g. 19 March 1932. The
first two numerals of the prefix; e.g. 67 (67622; illustrated examples of the notes are marked
with an asterisk (*) in the tables)

Peppiatt 5, London
Prefix

Date

First two digits of

the serial number

Prefix

Date

First two digits of

the serial number

Prefix

Date

First two digits of

the serial number

A 133

11 Oct 1934

08 29 34 38 41

A 317

6 May 1936

81 82

B200

4 April 1938

71

A 134

12 Oct 1934

85 88 89 90

A 330

4 June 1936

59

B 204

8 April 1938

15 17

A 137

19 Jan 1935

91 96 97

A 347

7 July 1936

74 78 91

B 206

11 April 1938

17

A 141

24 Jan 1935

04 05 06

A 350

10 July 1936

45

B 208

13 April 1938

14

A 152

22 Feb 1935

88 90

A 355

16 July 1936

B 213

4 May 1938

64 66 68

A 159

19 March 1935 80 81 85 90 91

A 356

17 July 1936

77

B 214

5 May 1938

30

A 162

22 March 1935 50 51 60

A 359

20 Jan 1937

42 46 51

B 215

6 May 1938

33 38 44

A 169

30 March 1935 82 83 84 87

A 363

25 Jan 1937

71 76

B 219

11 May 1938

22 26

A 170

18 April 1935

80 86

A 374

24 Feb 1937

64 77 80 83

B 236

15 June 1938

74

A 175

25 April 1935

70 84 86

A375

25 Feb 1937

13

B 237

16 June 1938

15 18

A 184

23 May 1935

A 378

18 March 1937 49 51 55

B 253

2 Aug 1938

88

A 187

27 May 1935

64

A 381

22 March 1937 63 64 67 71

B 257

6 Aug 1938

20

A 189

29 May 1935

36 44

A 385

27 March 1937 50* 52 55

B 258

8 Aug 1938

18

A 191

31 May 1935

A 387

30 March 1937 38 39 54 55 65

B 264

15 Aug 1938

12 14 15 24

A 193

19 June 1935

07 10 11 12 16

A 392

22 April 1937

68 83

B 269

5 Sep 1938

24 29

A 198

25 June 1935

81 85

A 398

29 April 1937

34 36

B 271

7 Sep 1938

43 46 53 57

A 205

20 July 1935

33

B 105

24 May 1937

64 66

B 279

16 Sep 1938

90

23 June 1937

29

A 216

20 Aug 1935

68

B 116

A 219

23 Aug 1935

25 28 34

B 117

24 June 1937

21

A 222

27 Aug 1935

07*

B 121

29 June 1937

11 15

A 223

28 Aug 1935

02 03

B 128

24 July 1937

55 57 60

A 233

25 Sep 1935

02 15

B 129

26 July 1937

47

A 239

19 Oct 1935

32 33

B 132

29 July 1937

28

A 240

21 Oct 1935

57

B 133

30 July 1937

22 29

A 247

29 Oct 1935

54 58 60 63 64

B 134

31 July 1937

14

A 251

19 Nov 1935

21 31 33

B 136

19 Aug 1937

24 26

23 Aug 1937

51 60

A 255

23 Nov 1935

41

B 139

A 268

15 Jan 1936

19

B 141

25 Aug 1937

09

A 270

17 Jan 1936

40 47 51

B 148

20 Sep 1937

06

A 274

5 Feb 1936

77

B 149

21 Sep 1937

31 34 65

A 275

6 Feb 1936

33

B 150

22 Sep 1937

78

A 281

13 Feb 1936

49 54 56 57

B 167

13 Jan 1938

77

A 282

14 Feb 1936

56 57 61 70

B 174

5 Feb 1938

77

A 283

15 Feb 1936

66 71

B 178

10 Feb 1938

84 85

A 290

7 March 1936

04 05 12 16 32

B 179

11 Feb 1938

41 63

A 294

12 March 1936 77

B 182

15 Feb 1938

40 44

A 295

13 March 1936 08 10 14 15 16

B 187

4 March 1938

64 75

A 297

16 March 1936 57 61 66

B 191

9 March 1938

59

A 310

15 April 1936

61 79

B 198

1 April 1938

95

A 313

1 May 1936

17 28 34

B 200 #

11 May 1938

71

38

# The correct prefix for this date is B 219.

Prefix B 279, dated 16 Sep 1938, is the last
date of issue used on Bernhard notes.

As can be interpreted from the tables

above, for the white five-pound notes, the
Bank of England used dates from the first
half of the month in even years and dates
from the last half of the month in odd
years. This and all other aspects the forgers
copied meticulously; while not completely
immune to mistakes as noted in a couple of
examples above.

Operation Bernhard printers waste.

IBNS Journal 47.4

Catterns 10

Catterns 20

Catterns 50

Prefix

Date

First two digits of

the serial number

Prefix

Date

First two digits of

the serial number

Prefix

Date

First two digits of

the serial number

L 175

19 May 1930

56

43 M

20 Sep 1930

42 N

L 180

18 Aug 1930

38

10 12 13 14 16
25 27 33 34 56

20 March
1930

42 45 48 52 59
63 77

K 102

19 Feb 1932

71 72 75

44 M

20 Nov 1930

44 N

20 June 1930

15 38 46 49 52

K 104

19 March 1932 67* 70

07 18 19 49 55*
56 57 58 59

47 N

20 May 1932

K 112

18 Aug 1932

45 M

15 Dec 1931

30 31 43? 47 88

48 N

20 June 1932

62 67

46 M

20 Aug 1932

15 21 24 25 26
31 33 81

50 N

15 June 1933

11 20 23 24* 25
27 34 38 54

47 M

15 Aug 1933

57 58 65 67 69
70 72

25 26 29

K 113

19 Aug 1932

K 120

17 March 1933 01 02

K 129

17 Nov 1933

69

K 131 # 18 Nov 1934

87

K 132

81 83

19 Jan 1934

00 01 07

# The date on a genuine note is 18 Jan 1934.

Peppiatt 10, London

Prefix

Date

First two digits of

the serial number

Prefix

Date

First two digits of

the serial number

Prefix

Date

First two digits of

the serial number

K 133

18 April 1934

70 95

K 160

17 Dec 1935

28 55 56

K 187

17 April 1937

54

K 134

19 April 1934

01 02 03 21 32
45 51

K 161

18 Jan 1936

60 62 63 64

K 188

17 May 1937

23 24 25

K 163

19 Feb 1936

28

K 189 #

18 May 1937

K 135

18 May 1934

34 97 99

K 164

18 March 1936 30 31 32

49 50 56 59 64
65 77 78

K 136

19 May 1934

40

K 165

19 March 1936 02

K 192

17 July 1937

36 38 40 50

K 137

18 June 1934

45 46 47

K 167

18 May 1936

71 72 85 88 94

K 193

16 Aug 1937

11

K 138

19 June 1934

90

K 168

19 May 1936

59 60 61 62

K 194

17 Aug 1937

15 20

K 139

18 July 1934

30

K 169

18 June 1936

61 62 64

K 195

16 Sep 1937

61 64

K 140

19July 1934

05

K 170

19 June 1936

83 84

K 196

16Nov 1937

39 43 45 46

K 141

16 Jan 1935

14

16 Oct 1937

88

K 144

16 March 1935 24 62 63 64

K 145

16 April 1935

17 29 33 40 45
59

K 146

17 April 1935

53 73 76

K 147

16 May 1935

55 58 62 65 69

K 174

K 148

17 May 1935

05 06

K 150

16 July 1935

K 151
K 152
K 153

K 171

18 July1936

42

K 197

K 172

18 Aug 1936

15 42 43 53 55
64 66

K 198

16 Nov 1937

71

K 199

19 Jan1938

19 22 24 25 26
27 32

00 01 02 03 04
05 69

L 100

20 Jan 1938

79 80 81 83

18 Sep 1936

16 18

L 101

19 Feb 1938

74

K 176

19 Oct 1936

48 50

L 102

19 March 1938 04 11 16 21

83

K 177

18 Nov 1936

52 54 59 68 79

L 103

19 April 1938

17 July 1935

54 72 73 74

K 178

19 Nov 1936

20 April 1938

77 78 88

33 35 38

07 08 09 10 11
12

L 104

16 Aug 1935

L 105

19 May 1938

18 23

17 Aug 1935

36

K 179

18 Dec 1936

86

L 107

20 June 1938

66 81 87

19 Dec 1936

19

K 173

19 Aug 1936

K 154

16 Sep 1935

34 56

K 180

K 155

17 Sep 1935

38 39 41

K 182

16 Feb 1937

39 41 42

K 156

16 Oct 1935

41 60 79 80 82

K 183

17 Feb 1937

15 19

17 March 1937 33
16 April 1937

K 157

17 Oct 1935

10 11 14

K 185

K 158

16 Nov 1935

72 74

K 186

K 159

16 Dec 1935

77 92 93 98

IBNS Journal 47.4

12 14 17 26*

00 14 32 41 44

# The correct date on the genuine note is 16 June

1937.
Non Nazi ?
Odd type
Possibly from Operation Andrew (the
abandoned precursor operation to Operation
Bernhard)

39

Peppiatt 20, London

Peppiatt 50, London

Prefix

Date

First two digits of the serial number

Prefix

Date

First two digits of the serial number

48M

20July 1934

07 20 62 97 99

42N

20 March 1930

63 64

49 M

20 Aug 1934

03 05 07 15 22 25 36 41 69 77 87

51 N

20 June 1934

17 18 19 38 40 42 47 59 63 64 73

50 M # 15 July 1935

15 19 27 46

52 N

20 July 1934

18 34

51 M

15 Aug 1935

14 16 17 21 33 36 38 43 77

53 N

15 April 1935

16 17 34 49 50 51

52 M

20 July 1936

61 69 81 83 85

54 N #

15June 1933

41

53 M

20 Aug 1936

28 30 33 49 52 54 56

54 N

15 May 1935

01 24 25 29 34*

54 M

7 June 1937

04 08 19 20 31 34 43 44 67 78*

55 N

15 June 1935

80 82

55 M

15 Oct 1937

24 28 33 35 38 42 44

56 N

20 April 1936

33 37 41 42 45 46 50

57

57 N

20 May 1936

61 70

58 N

20 June 1936

31 34 49

59 N

15 May 1937

52 59 65 66 68 69 76 88

60 N

15 June 1937

36

61 N

18 March 1938

37 77 85 86 90

62 N

18 April 1938

73

56 M 16 Dec 1939

# The correct date for this prefix is believed to be 20 Sep 1934.

Odd type
The prefix should be 57M.

This prefix is used for notes with Catterns signature

Incorrectly engraved date
# The correct prefix for this date is 50 N.

Forged White Fiver, signed by Peppiatt and issued from London.

Operation Bernhard 10, with Catterns signature and issued from London.

This forged 10 is signed by Peppiatt and issued from London. The line in
the watermark going to the centre of the triangle at the foot of the first
N in England, at the bottom centre of the note, can be seen. In the
genuine notes, this line goes to the left of centre.

Domiciled on Birmingham, this forged 10 carries the Mahon signature.

Note the tellers notch at the upper right.

40

IBNS Journal 47.4

100 Peppiatt, London

Prefix

Date

First two digits of the serial number

57 O

17Jan 1938

25 57 73 74

Branch notes
Signature

Denom

Branch

Prefix

Date

First two digits of the serial number

Mahon

10

Birmingham

105 V

24 Dec 1926

52 54 55 56*

Catterns #

10

Leeds

138 V

10 Jan 1933

02 06 12 24 25 64

Catterns

20

Leeds ?

Peppiatt

10

Leeds

150 V

27 Oct 1934

23 31

Peppiatt

10

Bristol

168 V

10 June 1937

01 03 05

Peppiatt

10

Liverpool

165 V

28 Sep 1936

03 71

Peppiatt

10

Liverpool

170 V

10 Feb 1937

45 46 47 76

Peppiatt

10

Manchester

153 V

10 Jan 1935

72

Peppiatt

10

Manchester

163 V

28 Feb 1936

14 47 53

# The actual prefix for this date is 143 V.

Contributor
Laurie Bamford: Many thanks for his help with research for this study.

A forged 20 carrying Catterns signature and domiciled on London.

A Catterns 50 domiciled on London, prepared by the internees at

Sachsenhausen.

A Bernhard 20 domiciled on London, with the Peppiatt signature.

A forged 50 with the signature of Peppiat and domiciled on London.

IBNS Journal 47.4

41

The Foreign Banks in China

Part I Early Imperial Issues (1850-1900)
John E. Sandrock 26-C
The Opening of China to the Outside World
t was not until Marco Polo ventured into China during his
Asian travels (1271-1295 AD) that the existence of China,
then part of the Mongol Empire under the great conqueror
Kublai Khan, became known to the Western world. Polo
discovered many ways in which the Chinese were far advanced
compared to Europeans. He was incredulous to discover that the
Great Khan possessed the secret of producing money out of paper.
Upon his return he wrote a book chronicling his travels entitled
The Book of Marco Polo, Citizen of Venice, Wherein is Recounted
the Wonders of the World. In it, he reported that ... once coined
in large quantities, this paper currency is circulated in every part
of the Great Khans dominions; no person, at peril of his life,
dares to refuse to accept it in payment. All his subjects receive
it without hesitation, because, wherever their business may call
them, they can dispose of it again in the purchase of merchandise
... such as pearls, jewels, gold or silver. With it, in short, every
article may be procured. We now know, with a large degree of
certainty, that it was the thirteenth-century Yuan dynasty kwan
notes of which he wrote.
Cathay, as China was then called, was the dominant power
in Asia. After conquering surrounding lands, Kublai Khan
subjugated them to the status of vassal states, obligated to pay
annual tribute to the Tartar throne. Another 260 years were
to pass before the first Westerners were to settle there. Instead
of traveling overland, these settlers came by sea. They were
Portuguese seamen and missionaries bent upon exploration and
trade. By 1557, they had established a trading post at Macao and
these men became extremely wealthy. Their ships carried silks,
spices, porcelain and tea to European markets turning handsome
profits on each voyage. Other Europeans, seeing the golden
opportunities offered by Far Eastern trade, soon joined in. They
did not come as tribute bearers, however, but as equals. Nor did
they admit to Chinese cultural superiority nor follow established
rules (such a kowtowing to Chinese officials); therefore they were
looked upon by the Chinese as barbarians.
The Chinese, considering themselves superior in all things,
looked down upon these barbarians seeking to trade with
China. After all, was China not the greatest nation on earth?
The Manchu emperor Kang Hsi (1661-1722) truly believed
that China ruled the world, being totally ignorant of geography
beyond Chinas boundaries. He described China as being at the
center of the universe, hence, the Middle Kingdom concept.
Manchu territorial claims were so extravagant that it was boasted
all territory Under the Heavens and Regions Within the Four
Seas were included within their domains. Such references could
still be found on the Great Ching Precious Notes of the 1850s.
These copper cash notes bear the four characters Tien Hsia Tung
Hsing in their right border design, which translated means to
circulate under the heavens.
The Chinese emperors generally held that the views and ideas
of barbarians were of no significance. Indeed, when George III
of Great Britain sent a letter to the emperor in 1795 suggesting
regular trade between the two countries, Chien-Lung replied
... there is nothing that the Middle Kingdom does not already
possess ... so therefore, how could trade be of any consequence?

IBNS Journal 47.4

Culturally, China was also in the ascendancy, with Chinese poetry

and literature at its zenith under the Ming emperors.
The Ming dynasty was overthrown in 1644 by invading
nomad Manchu tribesmen from the north. These tribesmen
greatly admired and recognized Chinese superiority in the arts
and in education, and chose to retain these features as part of
their culture. This was the situation the early traders encountered.
They found many things of beauty and utility to be exported to
European markets. Chinese silks and porcelains were in great
demand. The supply of tea could not keep up with English
demand, so prices rose dramatically.
As time went by, white seafarers became more and more vocal in
their demands that they be permitted to trade freely with China, as
well as establishing diplomatic relations. These mercantile interests
were thought by Europeans to be a matter of right. Soon after, the
voices of Protestant evangelism joined forces with the merchants in
demanding an open door throughout China.
The Opium Wars and Increasing Foreign Intervention
The Middle Kingdom, regarding itself as self-sufficient in all
respects, had no need for imports. There were no commercial
treaties with other nations. No diplomats represented European
governments at the imperial court. Many restrictions were placed
upon the barbarians, the chief of which was confinement to the
single port of Canton. Here Portuguese, English, Dutch, British,
American and French merchants plied their trade. Westerners
were not allowed free access to China proper. All business was
confined to small factories, little more than a cluster of waterfront
warehouses, where Chinese merchants presented their wares.
The earliest American ships to enter the China trade were the
privateers of Revolutionary War fame. These Yankee traders, ever
mindful that time was money, had speed uppermost on their
minds. The privateers were superseded in the 1830s by a new class
of shipthe China clippers. These were the fastest commercial
craft that ever sailed. They were to rule the waves for the next
forty years. Some of these ships were capable of making over
eighteen knots and covering well over four hundred miles in a
single day. The Great Tea Race took place in 1866 when eleven
ships set sail from Foochow at the same time bound for London.
The race ended ninety-nine days later after covering sixteen
thousand miles. The winner was Aerial, arriving in the Downs just
ten minutes ahead of her rival, Taiping.

The Chinese viewed foreigners who sought to trade with China as barbarians.
Portuguese, Dutch, British, American and French merchants seeking trade
were confined to the single port of Canton. All business was conducted in
small factories, such as this, where the Chinese presented their wares.

43

The British East India Company held the English trade

monopoly with China and India. It was this trade that introduced
tea to England and its American colonies. Other exports included
porcelain, brocades, sugar, ginger, silks and furs. While Chinese
goods were in great demand and sold well in Europe and America,
the problem was that virtually no demand existed for Western
goods in China. This created a serious trade imbalance. As a
consequence, European merchants found themselves shipping
large quantities of silver bullion to China to pay for these imports.
Clearly, something had to be done! It was the British who finally
found something the Chinese would buy. Opium was one of the
principal crops grown in British-controlled India in the eighteenth
century. It was the sale of opium that finally gave Europe a trade
advantage with China.
Opium trafficking may be said to have indirectly brought
about the downfall of the Chinese Empire, although the process
took one hundred fifty years. Originating in India, the narcotic
was introduced to China in the early 1700s. Its use was at first
confined to medicinal purposes. However, the drug soon became
a pastime of the wealthy and leisure classes. When this became
apparent, the emperor prohibited its continued use. This of course
did not stop the trade; it merely drove opium use underground.
Trade in opium was perpetually profitable. Initially there were
few addicts. In 1750 a mere four hundred chests of opium were
imported. In 1796, China imported fifteen hundred chests, each
containing one hundred and thirty-three pounds of the narcotic.
Internal rebellion at this time so weakened Ching rule that
Europeans began to be more assertive in their demands upon
China. In 1820, five thousand chests of opium entered China;
by 1830 that number had doubled and by 1840 the volume had
increased to forty thousand chests. The opium-smoking habit
grew until it tilted the balance of trade against China. Chinas
silver started a reverse flow, out of China, to pay for the drug. For
the first time the balance of trade was in favor of the Europeans.
Once the smoking habit had spread, the imperial Chinese
government became alarmed at the growing addiction of its
people and by the outflow of silver to pay for the drug. The social
and moral issues resulting from the opium traffic were recognized
from the start. As early as 1839 emperor Tao-Kuang wrote a letter
to Queen Victoria, then twenty years old, begging her to put a
halt to the illegal trade. History records no response, or even if
she indeed ever received the communication. It was also evident
that the extraordinary profits being made in the opium trade were
beginning to infest an increasingly corrupt and decadent Ching
bureaucracy. Tao-Kuang ordered a council to consider what could
be done. One group supported legalizing the sale of opium by
controlling its use, thereby permitting the emperor to profit from
the trade. They doubted that the importation and cultivation of
opium could be effectively prohibited. The moralists, on the other
hand, believed if opium smoking were legalized everyone would
soon be carrying pipes; therefore, there could be no compromise
with evil. After hearing these arguments, emperor Tao-Kuang
came down on the side of prohibition. One must reflect that one
hundred and eighty years later all this sounds alarmingly familiar,
and that we never really learn from historys lessons.
The government then tried to stamp out the opium traffic by
forbidding imports. The British argued that they were merely
satisfying the market and, besides, Chinese officials were eagerly
cooperating in the lucrative trade. British merchants saw opium as
the ideal trade commodity, imperishable and extremely profitable.
Upon arrival from India, opium chests were held in storage ships
offshore until they could later be transported upriver to Canton
for distribution throughout China. It was these opium stores that
Tao-Kuang ordered destroyed. Negotiations with the British to
44

end the opium traffic having failed, the Chinese seized twenty
thousand chests of newly arrived opium, mixed it with quicklime,
and dumped it at sea. The outraged British, determined to punish
the Chinese for their high-handed acts, sent troops and warships
to blockade Canton thus provoking the First Opium War. In the
opening action Chinese navy war junks were quickly dispatched
after firing upon the British warships. The First Opium War
lasted three years before the British finally prevailed. The Manchu
government was forced to sue for peacethe price of which
proved to be very dear indeed. The resultant Treaty of Nanking,
signed in 1842, was a gross act of plunder. The British demanded
the opening of the ports of Canton, Amoy, Foochow, Ningpo and
Shanghai to free trade and foreign residence; the surrender of the
island of Hong Kong in perpetuity, and an annual indemnity
of twenty-one million ounces of silver to be paid for the opium
destroyed and the cost of the campaign. The war, from the British
point of view, was really a daring speculation intended to pay
for itself, if successful. The Treaty of Nanking came to be known,
appropriately, as the first of the unequal treaties. Soon after, the
United States and France, seeing how weak and helpless China was,
concluded their own treaties with the Middle Kingdom. In 1844
these two countries were granted extraterritorial jurisdiction over
their own citizens, favorable tariffs on goods imported into China
and the right for missionaries to preach and reside in the interior.

The British fleet engages Chinese war junks defending Canton during
opening hostilities of the First Opium War.

The 1850s saw rapid growth of imperialism by the Western

powers. The primary goals were expansion of overseas markets
and the opening of additional ports in China. To this end, France
and the United States joined Britain in demanding that the
Ching government re-negotiate the Treaty of Nanking in order
to open more ports, legalize the opium trade, regulate the coolie
trade (cheap Chinese labor) and grant the right of residence for a
British ambassador in Peking. The Ching court rejected all these
demands. This prompted the Second Opium War, which may be
viewed as a continuation of the first.
It started innocently enough when on 8 October 1856 Chinese
officials boarded the Arrow, a Chinese-owned ship flying the
British flag, which was suspected of smuggling. The Chinese
crew was arrested, whereupon the British demanded their release
stating the Arrow was protected under the Treaty of Nanking
and that the Chinese had insulted the British flag. The Ching
government occupied at the time with the Taiping Rebelliona
genocidal internal affair lasting over fifteen years and claiming
twenty-five million liveswas powerless to resist.
In response to the Arrow incident, the British attacked the
Kwangtung forts along the Pearl River. The British Parliament
then sought the help of France, Russia and the United States to
form an alliance against China. The British and French joined
military forces to punish China; Russia and the United States did
IBNS Journal 47.4

not. The French and British forces cruised north to subdue and
capture the Chinese forts at Taku, the gateway to Peking. The
Ching forces continued to resist, whereupon the Anglo-French
army marched upon Tientsin and Peking, capturing both cities.
Emperor Hsien Feng fled the capital taking refuge temporarily
in the Summer Palace outside Peking, moving soon after to
Manchuria, leaving his brother to sue for peace. The Treaty of
Tientsin was ratified on 18 October 1860, bringing an end to the
Second Opium War.
The new treaty gave Britain, France, Russia and the United
States the right to establish diplomatic missions in Peking (a
formerly closed city), opened ten additional Chinese ports to
foreign trade, allowed free transit on the Yangtse River into the
interior, and required the payment of indemnities to Britain and
France totaling twenty million taels of silver. The defeat of the
Manchu army by such a small force, together with the flight (and
subsequent death of Emperor Hsien Feng), and the burning and
sacking of the Summer Palace was a shocking blow to China.
Having been thoroughly defeated and humiliated by the West,
China was to take years to recover.
Foreign Banking in China
From the mid-nineteenth century to the beginning of World War
II, no fewer than twelve foreign countries maintained banks in
China. Foreign banks enjoyed extraterritorial rights in China,
which included the freedom to issue their own banknotes. To
facilitate trade with the home country, these banks established
branches throughout China. These institutions were not
permitted to operate wherever they wished to set up an office, but
by treaty were limited to specific treaty ports, set aside under
the terms of the indemnity laws enforced upon China after losing
two opium wars. These banks had no right to do business outside
the treaty-port jurisdictions. Notwithstanding this restriction,
the operations of the foreign banks, with few exceptions, were
so successful the Chinese preferred them over their own native
banks. Because their operations were soundly managed, the notes
of the foreign banks were in great demand and consequently
circulated throughout all of China. For a list of the British banks
that issued notes in China see Table 1.

The Treaty Ports Gateways through which China was opened

to the West.

IBNS Journal 47.4

Operating entirely within foreign-held enclaves, foreign banks

were not subject to Chinese law, but rather operated under the
banking laws of their mother country. These banks could finance
projects within the treaty ports, but could not participate in
those beyond the ports without imperial sanction. In this way
foreign banks did not compete with the interests of Chinese
commercial banks. As noted, the principal function of the foreign
bank was to promote and finance foreign trade. The lifeblood of
this business was the handling of bills of exchange. Enjoying a
practical monopoly in the foreign-exchange business, the foreign
banks were in a position to dominate exchange rates between
China and the outside world. This was a very lucrative field.
When one recalls that many different types of currency circulated
within Chinas different geographical areasthe opportunity for
profit was very great. Typically, a foreign bank would return an
annual profit of from fifteen to twenty percent to its shareholders.
Additional sources of income for foreign banks were derived from
floating loans to the cash-starved Chinese government and by
transmitting remittances to and from China.
Some foreign banks maintained branches in multiple treaty
ports. This anomaly permitted a bank in one locality to discount
its own notes from another branch. The currency situation in
China made this possible for the simple reason that hard money
was always viewed as a commodity by the Chinese, serving only
coincidentally as a medium of exchange. Thus, a banks buying
and selling rates on money in circulation could differ, returning a
net profit to the bank on each and every exchange transaction.
Foreign funds held on deposit were always large and extremely
secure, as the bulk represented Chinese customs and salt
revenues held as collateral against foreign loans. For this reason,
the banknotes issued by foreign banks were in great demand,
circulating freely throughout China, in contrast to the treaty port
limitations placed upon the banks operations.
The Early British Banks in China
At one time or another no less than fifteen British-owned banks
did business in China. Of these, seven got their start in India. The
British, quite naturally, dominated foreign banking. Soon after
the first of the unequal treaties was signed, the leading merchant
houses of India, setting themselves up as private bankers, sought
new sources of revenue in China. The first of these, the Oriental
Bank, established a branch in Hong Kong in 1845, and some
time after commenced issuing banknotes denominated in Spanish
milled dollars. This issue was based upon the Carlos silver
dollar, the then preferred medium of exchange among Chinese
merchants. The Oriental Bank failed in 1884.

With headquarters in London, the Chartered Mercantile Bank of India, London

and China opened its doors in Shanghai in October 1854, where they issued
both silver dollar and tael notes. This remainder was the largest value issued.

45

Table 1: Foreign Note Issuing Banks in Imperial China (1850-1900)

Issuing Authority and (Branches)

Parent Country

Dates

Denominations

Agra and United Services Bank (Hong Kong)

Great Britain

1862

100, 200, 300, 500 dollars

Asiatic Banking Corporation (Shanghai)

Great Britain

18xx

10, 25 taels

Chartered Mercantile Bank of India, London and China (Hankow,

Hong Kong, Shanghai)

Great Britain

18xx
1881

5, 10, 25,50, 100, 1000 taels

1, 5, 10, 50 Mexican dollars

Chartered Bank of India, Australia and China (Hankow,

Hong Kong, Shanghai, Tientsin)

Great Britain

18xx
1881
1898-1911
19xx
19xx
1863-1930

5, 10, 25, 50, 100 taels

1, 5, 10, 50 Mexican dollars
1, 5, 10, 50, 100 Mexican dollars
100, 500 taels
5, 10 Hongping taels
1, 5, 10, 25, 50, 100, 500 dollars

Comptoir dEscompte de Paris (Shanghai)

France

1866

5 taels

Bank of Hindustan, China and Japan (Hong Kong)

Great Britain

1863

unknown

Hong Kong and Shanghai Banking Corporation (Amoy, Chefoo,

Foochow, Hankow, Hong Kong, Peking, Shanghai, Tientsin)

Great Britain

18xx
1894-1897
1874-1899
1884-1923

1, 5, 10 taels
1, 25, 50, 100 Mexican dollars
1, 5, 10, 50, 100 taels
1, 5, 10, 25, 50, 100 dollars

National Bank of China (Amoy, Hong Kong)

Great Britain

1892-1911

5, 10, 50, 100, 500 dollars

Oriental Banking Corporation (Hong Kong, Shanghai, Victoria)

Great Britain

1865
1866-1883

5, 10, 50, 100, 500 taels

5, 25, 50, 100 dollars

Russo-Chinese Bank (Hankow, Newchwang, Peking, Shanghai,

Tientsin)

Russia

1898
1898-1907
1903-1914
1901-1909

100, 300 cash

1, 3, 5, 10, 50, 100, 500 taels
1, 5, 10, 50 dollars
1, 5, 10, 50, 100 Mexican dollars

Note: Italicized denominations are illustrated in this article.

Between 1845 and 1866 other Indian-based banks established

offices in Canton, Hong Kong and Shanghai. These included the
Agra and United Services Bank (established 1853, failed 1866),
the Asiatic Banking Corporation, the Chartered Mercantile
Bank of India, London and China (established 1853), the Bank
of Hindustan, China and Japan, the Chartered Bank of India,
Australia and China (1857), and the French bank Comptoir
dEscompe de Paris. At the time, these banks functioned as the
main financiers of trade between the Far East and Europe,
America and Australia. By 1866, all these banks had offices in
Shanghai, Hong Kong and Hankow. Shanghais geographical
location made it well suited to serve as an international port, as
ships from overseas could transit through Shanghai, connecting

to the Yangtze River and the Grand Canal, and thus to all of
China. The banks Shanghai offices were located on the Bund
in impressive buildings which stand to this day. Initially, the
need for their services was restricted to opium transfers from
India to China, and tea exports from China to world markets.
As the tea export period lasted for only a few of the summer
months and opium imports became increasingly restricted by the
Chinese government, many of the early Indian banks failed or
were reorganized. For example, the Chartered Mercantile Bank
of India, London and China, after having issued Hong Kong
banknotes from 1859 to 1892, reorganized as the Mercantile
Bank of India, which then issued banknotes in its own right.
The only Indian-based bank to have survived throughout Chinas

The Bund, the main thoroughfare along the waterfront in Shanghais

International Settlement. The principal foreign banks doing business in the
city were located here.

Shanghai headquarters building of the Hong Kong and Shanghai Banking

Corporation. The address was No. 12, the Bund.

46

IBNS Journal 47.4

dwindling imperial years to

the Hong Kong
the end of the Republic of
Government
China was the Chartered
from 1880
Bank of India, Australia and
onward; and
China, of which we will hear
managing
more later.
British colonial
The Asiatic Banking
government
Corporation failedoddly
accounts in
enough by having tied its fate
China, Japan,
too closely to the Confederate
Singapore and
States of America! This strange
elsewhere.
situation came about with
When
the outbreak of the American
considering the
Civil War. At the time, British
voluminous
textile mills were entirely
banknote
dependent upon cotton
issues of the
Storage
of
opium
in
an
Indian
warehouse,
awaiting
The Oriental Bank was the first foreign
shipped from the Confederate bank to open a branch in China. It was shipment to China, 1850s.
Hong Kong
also located on the Bund.
States. The Confederates
and Shanghai
refused to supply the
Banking
British with cotton unless Britain granted them recognition as a
Corporation, all other foreign bank emissions in China appear
nation. This Britain refused to do, turning instead to India for
small by comparison. Aside from the Crown Colony of Hong
the desperately needed cotton. There, they tried to create a cotton
Kong, the bank issued paper money at one time or another on
raising culture overnight. Prices shot through the roof and supply
branches in Peking, Tientsin, Shanghai, Hankow, Foochow,
could not keep up with demand. Speculation in cotton futures ran
Chefoo and Amoy. These notes were principally in Chinese
rife, the Asiatic Bank being the principal provider of capital. Of
dollars; however, the tael, Mexican dollar, and currencies based
course, when the war ended, England went back to buying cheap
upon the local dollar were also employed. From its head office
southern cotton, ending the Indian experiment. Shareholders and
in Hong Kong, the bank also maintained foreign offices in such
the Asiatic Banking Corporation were left holding the bag. This
diverse places as Japan, India, Siam and the Philippines. The
bank also had offices in Singapore and at Colombo and Kandy in
Hong Kong and Shanghai Bank functioned as the quintessential
Ceylon. All closed in 1866.
center for British banking interests in all of China. The banks notes
Notes of the Indian banks conducting business in China
were always highly regarded and in great demand.
during the early years (1845-1870) are exceedingly rare, seldom
Since all hopes of self-sufficiency were destroyed after the
offered and beyond the reach of the average collector. The volume Opium Wars and the indemnities following the Sino-Japanese
of paper notes channeled into traffic by these early banks was
War (1895) and the Boxer Rebellion (1901), the Ching court
comparatively small, in some cases exceedingly so. A major
decided to raise capital through the foreign banks. Thrown
exception to this rule was the Hong Kong and Shanghai Banking
into turmoil by their unexpected defeats, China was plunged
Corporation, which enjoyed an extensive circulation of its notes
deeply into debt to pay for war indemnities and Chinas need for
in China from the 1870s onward.
foreign capital was great. The banks that had been established
In 1864, the largest and most influential of all the foreign
in preceding decades quickly expanded to meet these demands.
banks in China, the Hong
Kong and Shanghai Banking
Corporation, opened its doors.
This bank rose to a position of
dominance and is still issuing its
own notes and doing business
in Hong Kong right up to the
Chinese take over in 1997. The
bank was founded by a Scotsman
named Thomas Sutherland to
finance Far East trade. Particular
attention was paid to the initial
location of the bank, and the best
fung shui experts in Hong Kong
were called upon to select the
site. Here the stranger received
the same courtesy and service as
he might have found in London,
Paris or New York. Over the
following decades the bank
became a leader in Asia. Notable
events included establishing the
The Asiatic Banking Corporation had previously operated in Ceylon and Singapore before opening a branch in
first bank in Siam (1888) where
Shanghai. This bank heavily backed an effort by Great Britain to grow cotton in India and Ceylon to replace sources
it printed the countrys first
from the Confederate States of America, which was under blockade by Union forces. When the American Civil War
banknotes; acting as banker for
ended, the bank failed. All notes were identical except for place of issue. This remainder was on the Singapore branch.
IBNS Journal 47.4

47

Advertisement in the North-China Herald of 17 February 1876; the Hong Kong and Shanghai Banking Corporation reported a paid-up capital of five
million dollars and branches in eight countries. The Banks Shanghai 1-tael note of 1888 and 1-dollar note of 1913 are shown.

By the end of the nineteenth century, a total of nineteen foreign

banks with 101 branches were operating in China. These banks,
under protection of extraterritoriality laws, were able to issue their
own banknotes, take in large deposits, manage Maritime Customs
revenue and government transfers, as well as act as receiving agents
for war indemnities.
The largest loans were negotiated through the Hong Kong and
Shanghai Bank. Between 1895 and 1911 the bank concluded 112
foreign loans worth 1.806 billion silver dollars. Later, the Republic
of China adopted a policy of borrowing foreign capital. Under
this policy, the Chinese military took 468 foreign loans amounting
to additional billions. Business interests also availed themselves of
the foreign capital; principal among these loans was the financing
48

of 2,800 miles of railroads in the Yangtze valley. The loans were

secured by Chinas salt tax and customs revenues. By making loans
to the Chinese government, the foreign banks thus established
spheres of influence in different regionsthe Russians in the
northeast, the British in the Yangtze valley, the Japanese in the
north and central China, and the French in the south.
The Chinese characters for the Hong Kong and Shanghai Bank
were Huifeng Yinhang, which the British pronounced Wayfung.
When translated these characters meant abundant remittances.
The opening of the Shanghai branch followed shortly after the
headquarters was established in Hong Kong. A Scotsman by the
name of David MacLean was the able General Manager. He held
the office from 1865 to 1873 and was responsible for convincing
IBNS Journal 47.4

Shanghai local currency note in the amount of 5 dollars, issued in 1923.

the Imperial Maritime Customs to deposit all its income in the

bank, a very lucrative business relationship. New branches were
then established wherever the Imperial Maritime Customs had local
offices. The bank soon found itself branching out beyond customs
deposits into government loans, indemnity collections, the building
of railways, and even loaning money to the central government to
raise an army to eradicate troublesome northern warlords.
During this period, and continuing right up to World War I,
Britain and Germany joined forces to create a balance of power
aimed at limiting the expansion of Russian and French interests in
China. The Hong Kong and Shanghai Banking Corporation and
the Deutsche-Asiatische Bank were heavily involved. Their effort
was largely successful.
By the turn of the twentieth century the Hong Kong and
Shanghai Bank had become the most important foreign bank
in China, issuing a great variety of banknotes (see Table 1).
Since the banks shareholders had limited liability for these note
emissions, the bank was required to hold a one-third specie
reserve at all times. As a result, these notes were always secure and
never defaulted. The fact that this bank effectively set the Shanghai
foreign exchange rates shows the extent of its increasing dominance
in Chinese financial matters. The banks role as custodian of official
Chinese funds continued until the Central Bank of China assumed
responsibility after the currency reform of 1935.
The second largest participantamong British banking
interestswas the Chartered Bank of India, Australia and China.
This bank was originally formed in India in 1857 under a Royal
Charter granted by Queen Victoria. The following year it opened
a branch in Hong Kong, which was given the right to issue
banknotes for the Crown Colony in 1861. A Shanghai branch
opened shortly thereafter.
Initially, the banks business centered on the shipment of tea
from China, coffee and rum from Java and India, and tobacco
and spices from the Philippines. A large portion of its early
business involved discounting bills for the export of opium
from India to China. Transactions in the opium trade generated
significant profits for the bank.
In addition to the opium trade, the next largest source of
business was in the export of raw cotton due to demand brought
about by the American Civil War. The boom in exports provided
substantial revenue to the Chartered Mercantile Bank of India,
Australia and China. The banks expansion continued into the
1900s, leading it to open additional branches in China and
across Asia. After the opening of the Suez Canal (1869) and
the extension of telegraphic service to China (1871) business
increased dramatically. The traditional banking business in
exports of indigo and tea from Calcutta, rice from Burma, sugar
IBNS Journal 47.4

from Java, wool from Australia, hemp from Manila and silk and
tea from China and Japan continued, although surpassed by the
growth of raw cotton and cotton products.
Commencing 1861, the Chartered Bank of India, Australia
and China was empowered to issue Notes Payable to Bearer on
Demand at any of its branches. These issues were always within
the safeguards required by the Colonial Banking Regulations and
met with great acceptance in Hong Kong and elsewhere, with the
exception of Shanghai. The Chinese in Shanghai held a prejudice
against foreign paper notes in part because of the refusal of the
Customs House there to accept them in payment of dues. As
a result of this disfavor, there was never a large sum of notes in
circulation. With the Shanghai exception, fiat money issued by
the Chartered Bank of India, Australia and China, though small
in volume, was always highly regarded by the public.
Another British bank operating in Hong Kong with a branch
in Shanghai went by the name of the National Bank of China
Limited. Of this institution very little is known. In fact, its very
existence would have remained a mystery if not for the discovery
of several salesmens samples some years ago. Kahn reports that
the National Bank of China Limited was founded in Hong Kong in
1891 and closed in 1911. At that time the bank had a small paid-up
capital of 600,000. Its note circulation was at all times small. Upon
closing, all notes were fully accounted for, a most unusual feat in
China, which would explain their virtual non-existence today.

Indian hundi (equivalent to our demand bill of exchange, which is payable

upon presentation) for the shipment of 14 chests of opium in 1904. (The
Indore Opium Agency stamp appears on the back of the hundi). The King
Edward VII revenue stamps attest to the payment of 4 rupees, 8 annas in
taxes on this shipment.

49

The Russo-Chinese Bank

From the beginning, the Russo-Chinese Bank was established as a
joint-venture bank representing Russian interests in China. One year
after its founding (1895), the Russo-Chinese Bank received from
the Imperial Chinese Government a contract for the construction
of the Chinese Eastern Railway in Manchuria. This venture was
so successful that by the end of 1902 the bank had become the

second largest foreign bank in China. The total of all British bank
investment, including the Hong Kong and Shanghai Banking
Corporation, added up to 33 percent of foreign investments in
China, while the Russo-Chinese Bank alone accounted for 31.3 per
cent. Different roles were assigned to the banks principal offices, with
Peking being basically engaged in political activities and Shanghai in
the mercantile exchange business.
Prospering under its railroad charter,
the bank issued a series of Mexican-dollar
denominated notes in 1901 and tael and
dollar notes in 1907. As soon as traffic opened
on the Chinese Eastern Railway, it began
collecting fares for passengers and freight in
Mexican dollars. Once the line became fully
operational, only rubles were accepted. A large
Russian colony grew up in the concession zone
along the railway. It was only natural that new
trade and industrial enterprises arose from this
migration and that the bank served to assist in
the extensive development of this new industry
and commerce.
The Russo-Chinese Bank suffered greatly
after the Russo-Japanese War (1904-1905).
Having actively financed Russian military
operations, the bank lost most of the funds
Five dollar Shanghai local currency note of the Chartered Bank of India, Australia and China
accumulated prior to the war. Business
dated on the first of September, 1922.
declined sharply and, to survive, the bank
merged with several other imperial Russian
banks, emerging as the Russo-Asiatic Bank.
In Part II of this three-part series, we shall
explore the foreign banknote issues of other
nations during the remainder of the imperial
reign in China.

Ten dollar Hong Kong branch issue of 1923.

Bibliography
Bruce, Colin Standard Catalog of World Paper
Money, Volume 1, Iola, Wisconsin, 2005,
Krause Publications
Bruce, Colin Standard Guide to South Asian
Coins and Paper Money, Iola, Wisconsin,
1981, Krause Publications
Ji, Zhaojin A History of Modern Shanghai
Banking, London, 2003, M.E. Sharpe, Inc.
Kann, Eduard Foreign Note-Issuing Banks
in China, Far Eastern Economic Review,
Hong Kong, Vol. XXV, June 1957.
Sandrock, John E. Copper Cash and Silver Taels
The Money of Manchu China, Baltimore,
1995, Gateway Press Inc.
Xiang, Dai Zhi Currencies in Old Shanghai,
Shanghai, 1997, Shanghai Peoples Fine
Arts Publishing House

Specimen of Russo-Chinese Bank: 100 Mexican dollar note of 1901.

50

IBNS Journal 47.4

Variants of the Hungarian 1,000

Peng Banknote Dated 1 July 1927
Vladimr Kudlk 7734

specialize in collecting Hungarian banknotes and am always

looking for unknown variants. I obtained a lot of information
from the Internet, colleagues, and numismatic shops. Its very
interesting and I constantly find new variants not yet described in
catalogues.
I would like to present variants of one of the most wonderful
and rare Hungarian banknotes, the 1,000-peng note dated
1.7.1927 (Pick 94). This banknote was printed with intaglio
presses using blue ink. Not only is the banknote beautiful, it also
has an interesting relationship with the Czech state. On the back
is part of a painting by Gyula Benczur, The Christening of St.
Stefan I in the year 984 by Czech bishop.
This banknote is also interesting in its different use of color
for serial numbers (green) and control number (red). It is
extraordinary in the history of Hungarian banknotes.
The only serial letter is F with three-digit serial number; e.g. of
the type F 222.

2) Two locations for the serial number were used:

a) Serial letter and number under signatures.

b) Serial letter and number above signatures

3) Four combinations of numbers were used for

specimen banknotes:
Front of the 1000-pengo note.

Back of the 1000-pengo note.

I obtained images of these variants from colleagues and the

Internet, especially from auction catalogues, collectors web sites
and my own collection. I found the following variants

a) 123456 and F 123

b) 000000 and F 123

c) 000000 and F 000

d) without serial and control

numbers

1) Two types of numerals were used for control numbers:

a) Square numeral 3.

b) Round numeral 3.

IBNS Journal 47.4

53

4) Four types of perforations were used for circulated

and specimen banknotes:

Of the different variants, there are examples of unfinished

banknotes or misprints. Obverse without main (blue) print, but
with underprint, including serial and control number; reverse is
completed.

a) Without perforation, but with zero numberfor circulation

and evidently specimens

Reverse without main print, obverse is complete.

b) One perforation of MINTA, vertically or horizontally.

From the variants listed above we can calculate all possible

combinations. But for clear arrangement, I prepared a table
of theoretical possibilities of occurrence of the 1000-peng
banknotes. Once again, these are only mathematical and
theoretical possibilities.
The following table contains several parts:

c) Three perforations of MINTA horizontally.

d) Four holes about 11 mm in diameter.

5) There are also examples of the note without serial

and control numbers:

54

I tems a) to d) Banknotes acquired from circulation

with common serial and control numbers, without
perforations.
Item e) A separate banknote without serial and control
numbers. It is not certain if this banknote is from
circulation or an unfinished printing. But on the basis of
the occurrence of another banknote in another Hungarian
period (emission 1926, 1938, 1939), it is possible this
variant was circulated.
Items S1) to S12) The banknotes with different
combinations of numeration (the common control
numbers and serial numbers). Those with special
numerationa combination of common control number
and zero serial number F 000; a common serial number
and zero control number 000000; or completely zero
numbers F 000 / 000000) without or with perforations.
The banknotes were perforated either to devalue them
after use or for banking samples.

IBNS Journal 47.4

Table 1
Pick
#94

1000 Peng 1.7.1927

W/O Perforations 1 x MINTA

3 x MINTA

4 holes

II

III

IV

Ser. No. 1
Contr. No. 2

Ser. No. 2
Contr. No. 2

Ser. No. 1
Contr. No. 2

Ser. No. 2
Contr. No. 2

Does Exist

TYPE OF PERFORATION

Supposed To Exist

Variants and Sub variants

Circulated or Samples

Control No.
Places

Type Of Ser. No.

a)

Serial No. Under

Signatures

Ser. No. 1
Contr. No. 2

Ser. No. 2
Contr. No. 2

Ser. No. 1
Contr. No. 2

Ser. No. 2 Contr.

No. 2

Circulated

b)
c)
d)

Common Serial
and Control
Number

Serial No. Above

Signatures

e)

Without Serial And Control Number

(Circulated ?)

S1)

Circulated

S2)

Common Serial
And Control
Number

S3)

Serial No. Under

Signatures

Serial No. Above

Signatures

S4)
Serial No. Under
Signatures

S5)

Sample

S6)

Control No.
000000

S7)

Serial No. Above

Signatures

S8)

Serial No.
Common F
222

S9)

Sample

Serial No. Under

Signatures

S10)

Control No.
000000

S11)

Serial No.
F 000

S12)

Serial No. Above

Signatures

Ser. No. 1
Contr. No. 2

Ser. No. 2
Contr. No. 2

Ser. No. 1
Contr. No. 2

Ser. No. 2
Contr. No. 2

Ser. No. 1
Contr. No. 2

Ser. No. 2
Contr. No. 2

Ser. No. 1
Contr. No. 2

Ser. No. 2
Contr. No. 2

It is also interesting that I saw only a few serial number

combinations during my inquiry into the variants. Where are
the others?

Table 2
Serial No. 1 (Square No. 3)

Serial No.2 (Round No. 3)

000
063

111

013

065

173

031

IBNS Journal 47.4

For specialists, this information on variants is not only news,

but also a theme for searching for their collections. I have many
other interests concerning variants on Hungarian banknotes.
Maybe another time Ill discuss these.
If anybody has information or comments on the content of
this article, please contact me at [Link]@[Link]
Sources
[Link]
[Link]
[Link]
Several private collectors
55

Note Security: Optiks

De La Rues wide thread with window is proving popular

Owen W. Linzmayer 7962

ee-through windows are no longer a novelty available

only on polymer substrates. Paper-based banknotes with
windows are becoming ever more common as security
printers race to keep ahead of counterfeiters and competitors.
Although Papierfabrik Louisenthal can boast of being first
to market with the 15 September, 2005 introduction of the
Bulgarian National Banks 20-leva commemorative note
incorporating varifeye (see 47.1 pp 60-61), De La Rues Optiks
appears to be picking up momentum despite being second out
of the gate.
Actually, Louisenthal ([Link]) announced
varifeye a year after De La Rue ([Link]) unveiled
Optiks at the industry-only Currency Conference in Rome,

Italy in May 2004. However, it would be two and a half years

before Optiks was first used on Kazakhstans 10,000-tenge note
(US$83), the highest denomination in the new family of notes
introduced on 15 November, 2006.
All the notes in the new series from this central-Asian country
share similar design elements on front (vertical format) and back
(horizontal), distinguished primarily by different color schemes
and physical sizes that graduate along with the denominations.
The front of each note features the Astana-Baiterek monument
at center, with a fragment of sheet music of the national anthem
overprinted with the numerical denomination. The monument is
named after its location in the capital of Astana, and baiterek, the
Kazakh word for the poplar tree. According to folklore, the hero

In reflected light (right), the Optiks window looks like a large black oval, but when viewed through transmitted light (left) its easy to see the
demetallized image of a deer in the aperture of the 18 mm thread. Also visible is a solid security thread, a snow leopard, and an electrotype
denomination as watermarks.

56

IBNS Journal 47.4

Yer-Tostik found a magic tree-of-life in the branches of which

the mythical bird Samruk lays a golden egg once a year, only to
have it eaten by a snake. The tower, completed in 2002, represents
this regeneration myth as a stylishly designed steel tree with a
huge egg of gold mirrored glass. The tower stands 97 meters tall,
a height specifically chosen to commemorate the capitals move
in 1997 from Almaty, near the Kyrgyzstan-Chinese border, to
Astana, which literally means capital.
On the face of each note the coat of arms appears to the left
of the Astana-Baiterek tower, the flag at upper right, and an open
palm at the bottom. The back of each note features a different
image within the outline of Kazakhstans boundaries. On the
violet and blue 10,000-tenge note, which measures 149 x 79 mm,
this map has canyons in the background and Akorda Palace (the
presidential residence in Astana) in the foreground.
All of the notes in the new series are protected against
counterfeiting by a wide array of security features, including a
watermark of a snow leopard with electrotype denomination,
a registration device, intaglio printing, iridescent and optically
variable inks, microprinting, a latent image of the denomination,
fluorescent novel serial numbers, and pink fibers that fluoresce
red under ultraviolet light. Furthermore, all denominations have
traditional solid security threads. On the lower denominations,
these are paired with windowed security threads, which are
replaced by Optiks on the 10,000-tenge note.
When viewed in transmitted light, you can see the
denomination repeating along the length of the windowed
security threads, up to 4 mm wide, which is pretty much standard
for modern banknotes. In contrast, the unique Optiks thread
is 18 mm wide and repeats an image of a deer and the notes
denomination in letters and digits. Thanks to the demetallization
process, you can see through the large distinctive deckle-edged,
elliptically shaped aperture.
According to Andrei Balakhmetov, a member of the Cash
Handling Department of the National Bank of Kazakhstan
([Link]), Generally speaking, the issue of a new
series of banknotes from a security point of view is aimed at
enhancing the security features against counterfeiting. We had no
serious problems with counterfeiting, but we found a tendency
IBNS Journal 47.4

towards an increase of forged banknotes within the next two

to three years. Thats why as a part of preparation for the new
series we analyzed available features that could provide sufficient
levels of security for a long period of time. Like all banknote
issuers, the National Bank of Kazakhstan keeps watch on and
analyzes information about new security features. We took into
consideration varifeye and Optiks. When varifeye was introduced
to the industry, our information about this feature and its usage
showed that it has poor durability. Thats why when we developed
our new design and chose security features we didnt think
about varifeye. But Optiks met the requirements of security and
reliability.
Optiks was not used on all denominations because it costs
roughly twice as much to manufacture the 10,000-tenge note
with Optiks than the 5,000-tenge note without the feature.
However, it appears to be money well spent because, while
the bank has discovered some poor-quality counterfeits of the
2,000- and 5,000-tenge notes produced with ink-jet printers, no
counterfeits of the 10,000-tenge note have yet been discovered.
Not only is Optiks secure, its also reliable and has been
warmly embraced by the Kazakh people. The bank has found that
the 10,000-tenge notes perform as well as other denominations
when subjected to normal wear. The polymer window was the
principal interest for the public, which has reacted to Optiks
with enthusiasm because it facilitates the authentication of the
banknote, says Balakhmetov.
With Kazakhstan having proven that Optiks is resistant to
counterfeiting and durable enough for real-world circulation, the
new security feature is picking up steam around the globe. On
10 April 2007, the Reserve Bank of Fiji ([Link])
introduced its first-ever 100-dollar note (US$65.50), confident
that Optiks could protect the largest denomination used on the
islands. Optiks is also incorporated into the 100- and 500-riyal
notes (US$27.50 and US$138, respectively) issued 26 September
2007, by the Qatar Central Bank ([Link]), as well as the
100-paanga note (US$55.10) introduced by the Reserve Bank of
Tonga ( [Link]) on 30 July 2008, to commemorate
the coronation of King George Tupou V.

57

Pakistans Prize Bonds at Last

rize Bonds Catalogue of Pakistan, Rafiq Kasbati and Yahya

Qureshi, published privately, Pakistan 2007. US$6.00 from
the authors.
One of the fringe areas of paper money collecting has, at last, been
comprehensively described. Although not a subject that will have
caught the eye of many collectors, Prize Bonds issued in Pakistan
have always held an interest for collectors of banknotes from that
nation. Many is the collector who has stumbled upon the bonds, not
knowing exactly what they were, how many types existed and how
many varieties there might be.
The Prize Bonds Catalogue of Pakistan has been published to
unveil the mysteries of these issues. Printed locally in Pakistan
and published privately in 2007, the book was written by Rafiq
Kasbati and Yahya Qureshi, who previously wrote and published
Bank Notes Coins Catalogue of Pakistan.
Following introductory comments, the body of the new book
commences with a history of Pakistans Prize Bonds, explaining
how they were inspired by the Prize Bonds issued in undivided
India from 1944 and British Premium Savings Bonds from 1956.
Pakistan issued its first Prize Bonds in October 1960. The opening
line of the history instructs readers as to what they are: Prize
Bonds, as the name suggests, are Bonds issued by a Government,
which do not promise any interest, but are awarded a prize,
determined by a draw held at a fixed date or regular intervals.
After quoting references from various sources pertinent to the
issue of Prize Bonds, there is a valuable section on the Governors
of the State Bank. A portrait of each Governor is presented, with
their dates of office, and a facsimile of their signature as it appears
on the Prize Bonds. This is particularly useful, as the signatures of
many of the governors differ on the Prize Bonds, compared to their
signatures on banknotes. This is because the signatures of some
governors are written in Urdu on banknotes and in Latin characters
on Prize Bonds. It is also interesting to note that while the Prize
Bonds are issued by the Government of Pakistan, they carry the
signature of the Governor of the State Bank.
The body of the work is dedicated to describing each issue
of Prize Bonds. At the top of each page a bond is reproduced in
colour, followed by a description of the bond, identification of its

security features, size, printer, estimated collector value, catalogue

reference, dates of issue, signatories, issue and withdrawal dates,
prizes, and prize draw dates. Every effort has been made to obtain
comprehensive data for each bond and this aim has been elegantly
achieved and well presented.
For any collector of the Prize Bonds of Pakistan, this slim
44-page volume is essential. The only point on which the reader
might be disappointed, when paging through this work, is the
realization that there are probably more bonds and varieties than
they ever imagined. Still, it is better to know than to guess!
Prize Bonds Catalogue of Pakistan costs US$6.00, including
postage, and is available by contacting the authors:
Rafiq Kasbati
Shop #126A
Latif Cloth Market
M.A. Jinnah Road,
Near Mereweather Tower
Karachi 7400
PAKISTAN
Phone 021 2435006
or Yahya Qureshi on
yjq@[Link]

A 100-rupee prize bond issued between 1987 and 1990. The signature of V. A. Jaferey differs from
that used on the banknotes.
IBNS Journal 47.4

59

The Receipts of the Mohammed Ali

Jinnah Memorial Fund
Peter Symes 4245

ver the last several years, items have been appearing

on banknote dealers lists that have been described as
cash coupons, emergency issues, or similar, issued
in Pakistan. These items have been represented as such, usually
from ignorance, as Urdu is not the most widely spoken language
outside the sub-continent.
The items are in fact receipts for donations to the Mohammed
Ali Jinnah Memorial Fund, given to donors. Issued during the
1960s, all receipts are uniface and printed on plain off-white thick
paper. There were four receipts prepared, in the denominations of
1, 5, 10, and 100 rupees. The text on the 1-rupee receipt reads:
Quaid-i-Azam Memorial Fund
One Rupee
Received with thanks one rupee for Quaid-i-Azam Memorial Fund

The receipts carry a signature, below which is the title

Chairman of the Central Committee. At the far left, toward the
bottom of the receipt, is the Bengali text for one taka. The phrase
Quaid-i-Azam translates as The Great Leader and is the term
commonly used in Pakistan to refer to Mohammed Ali Jinnah.
The mistaken conclusion that these receipts are some type of
currency is probably due to several factors. First, and primarily,
the receipts carry the printers imprint of Thomas De La Rue and
Company Limited London. Second, the portrait of Mohammad
Ali Jinnah is the same portrait used on many banknotes issued
in Pakistan. Third, each receipt carried a serial number. Finally,
for those who can read a little Urdu and Bengali, the use of
One Rupee and One Taka hint at a monetary value. The last
observation was compounded by the repetition of the value in
the four corners of the receipt in various forms of numerals. All
together, the receipts carry the appearance of a note with some
value, printed by one of the worlds leading security printers. It
is, therefore, not surprising to find that the receipts have been
mistaken for some type of currency.
The Mausoleum, or Mazaar, of Mohammed Ali Jinnah was
a troubled project that took many years to complete. Although
Jinnah died in 1948, it was only in 1956 that a committee
was formed to organize the building of the mausoleum. After
consulting the leading engineers of the country, an international
design competition was undertaken, with the winning design
of the British architect Raglan Squire being announced in
1958. However, Fatima Jinnah, the sister of Mohammed Ali
Jinnah, rejected the design and insisted that a proposal by Yahya
Merchant of Bombay be accepted. In 1960 General Ayub Khan,
the President of Pakistan, approved the design proposed by
Fatima Jinnah and work commenced.
Although the white marble Mausoleum was completed in 1970,
the gardens intended to be built around the mausoleum were not
completed at that time. The gardens languished until 1999 when
President Musharraf gave the direction to complete them.
During the ten years it took to build the mausoleum, various
problems were encountered, one of which was a lack of money. In
an effort to raise funds, donations were sought from the public and
the receipts illustrated here were prepared to give to donors. While
these receipts are not cash coupons or emergency issues, they are

IBNS Journal 47.4

nevertheless interesting items for collectors of Pakistani banknotes. It

is because they carry the famous portrait of Mohammed Ali Jinnah,
which appears on the banknotes of Pakistan, and because they
are printed by Thomas De La Rue and Company, which printed
Pakistans first banknotes, that the receipts are of interest.

A common 1-rupee receipt, coloured light and dark brown.

A blue and green 5-rupee receipt. This denomination is not common.

This 10-rupee receipt, printed in red and orange, is very difficult to find.

Printed in green and yellow, the 100-rupee receipts are also very difficult to acquire.

61

Chapter News
Compiled by Arthur E. Levenite 2863

he IBNS currently has many regional and topical chapters

that hold periodic meetings open to all members and the
public. For information on joining a chapter, or to find out
when and where the next meeting will be held, visit the chapters
web site or contact the presiding officer of the chapter.
Arabian Gulf Chapter
Mohammed H. Yousef, President
P.O. Box 31755
Sulaibekhat 90808
Kuwait
abujassimm@[Link]
Arabic Chapter
Dr. Ali Mehilba, President
247 el Horia Avenue Sporting
P.O. Box 861
Alexandria
Egypt
alimehilba@[Link]
Belgian Chapter
Wilfried Bracke, President
150 Kleitkalseide
B-9990 Maldegem
Belgium
IBNSbe@[Link]
Burnley Chapter
Francis Thornton, Chairman
49 Brier Crescent, Nelson
Lancaster BB9 OQD
United Kingdom
franthorn@[Link]
October 2008 meeting: The chapter meeting of the 23rd of
October at Nelson House Burnley, opened with a warm welcome
to the 21 paper money enthusiasts present with apologies from
four of our absent friends. The dreadful weather forecast and
conditions may have been responsible.
The chairman, Francis Thornton, then made a brief statement
concerning his heart attack and surgery during the summer. As
a result of which, I will stand down as chairman after 34 years
in the post. Geoff Sutcliffe who has been aware of my condition
offered his help and was of great assistance during the auction.
Geoff is well known throughout paper money circles, and I have
no hesitation in proposing him as my successor commencing
January 2009. However after such a long association with the
chapter I wish to remain in some less arduous capacity as Chapter
President. In the subsequent vote Geoff was elected chairman.
Details of his appointment and other officials will be forwarded to
the chapter secretary.
Our speaker for the evening, James Knight, was then welcomed
to give his illustrated talk on Birds on Banknotes. Jim explained
and illustrated how a very interesting, attractive, and extensive
thematic collection can be assembled relatively cheaply. The birds
62

are not always the major feature of the designs, but are sympathetic
to the origin of the issues. The talk was roundly applauded.
The break for refreshments and a refill provided time for a second
look at the auction display which had been laid out prior to the
start of the meeting. With 90% of the lots being sold, a very good
night was had by all. As the meeting was drawing to a close, the
chair reminded UK members to update their new diaries for 2009
to make an entry for the large (free) Coin/Stamp/Banknote Fair
on the 16th/17th of January at York Racecourse, at its regular
venue for Burnley members.
Details of the next chapter meeting will be sent to all those who
have attended, plus notices and maps to any new members within
reasonable traveling distance of Burnley.
Czech Chapter
Evzen Sknouril, President
Vaclavske nam. 21
110 00 Praha 1
Czech Republic
IBNScz@[Link]
[Link]
420-224-109-425 fax
420-224-109-455 phone
East Midlands Chapter
Simon Biddlestone, Chairman
66 Moorsholm Drive
Nottingham NG8 2EF
United Kingdom
simonbid@[Link]
July 2008 meeting: Nine members and one guest attended on one
of the few warm sunny days of our English summer. Vacant positions
within the IBNS were discussed, and Dave Kenneys appointment as
chapter secretary was announced to positive comments.
The latest edition of the modern issues catalogue (SCWPM Vol.
III, 14th ed. 1961-date) was shown along with an accompanying
compact disc containing the whole catalogue. Three members
were included as contributors, but Alan Coles name had been
omitted in error. Discussion followed as to the possible usefulness
(or not) of the CD version.
New notes and acquisitions were shown. Alan had acquired
a scarce modern rarity, namely a Bulgarian 100 Leva of 1989
(P99), unissued due to the country changing its title from
Peoples Republic to The Republic of . Only a few examples had
apparently been saved from destruction. Roger Outing offered
two unusual Bank of England cheques, the first a proof, the
second a specimen carrying the signature of Chief Cashier D.H.F.
Somerset (1980 88), and explained the differences between
them. Mark Ray showed a one pound note with a rare overlap
prefix (S89L, signed by Page rather than Fforde as was normal).
It had been recovered from a charm bracelet and so had been
extremely folded and trimmed, but was still a nice find. Simon
IBNS Journal 47.4

displayed a scarce Jersey 5 Z replacement note acquired at the recent

Collectors Fair in York attended by at least six chapter members.

few if any changes, due to stocks of the existing edition having run
out. This was considered to be a rather worrying development.

After other society business and a break for refreshments, it was

time for the days talk. With the intriguing title of The Philosophy
of Collecting, Alan Cole entertained us with a witty and in-depth
examination of the reasons why we collect, how we collect, and
what we collect. It starts with curiosity and ends with addiction
was just one of his many astute observations. With amusing
anecdotes and analysis, it was a well prepared and enjoyable
talk illustrated with slides of notes from his collection, and
other acquisitions from many years of collecting, and was much
appreciated by his audience.

Our illustrated talk was by colleague and expert David Carew.

Relating his interest in the first Gulf War of 1991, its propaganda
and related banknote issues, David gave a detailed PowerPoint
presentation, recalling the background to the conflict, including
the lighter side with contemporary political and satirical cartoons,
and showing many Iraqi and Kuwaiti banknotes of the period.
This included some rare examples that had been officially
overstamped after falling into allied government hands. David
was thanked for his efforts.

September 2008 meeting: Ten members enjoyed a convivial

Saturday afternoon. The meeting opened with Dave Kenney
being congratulated on his appointment as Chapters Secretary
for the IBNS. Simon Biddlestone updated the group with regard
to the IBNS library disposal, stating that despite few books
having been borrowed, an offer from an IBNS member had been
agreed by the board. The following week was London Banknote
Week, including auctions at Spink and DNW, a London chapter
meeting, and the bourse / show / congress. Most chapter members
present were intending to visit one or more events.
Next was our popular New Notes and Acquisitions section.
Members took it in turn to show and pass round a diverse and
interesting selection of recent purchases. Roger Outing was
investigating gaps in the security thread found in Bank of England
notes, and Alan Cole showed a most interesting propaganda note
based on a Yugoslav 100 dinara note to be used as a Nazi exit pass
in exchange for One Jew. Laurence Pope took delight in showing
three specimen notes of French India (Picks 5as, 5bs and 7as), a
Bank of England Newland 1 of 1806, and an early cheque signed
by the Earl of Arran before he was killed in a duel! Dave Kenney
had a selection of Zimbabwe notes including the very latest issues
following the revaluation of the currency, and explained the story
behind the recent issue of local 1 notes in Lewes, Sussex.
David Carew had three unusual Indian court fee revenue notes
dating from the Victorian era, for 55 rupees, 300 rupees, and
1000 rupees, while Hansatsu expert Eddie Nurcombe had brought
along several recently acquired pieces, including one from 1748.
Possible future talks were discussed, with Laurence Pope offering
a talk on the banknotes of France for the November meeting. He
has also prepared talks on Jamaica, Honduras and Belize for a
paper money lecture programme for a Western Caribbean cruise
next January aboard Fred Olsens Braemar. No arrangements for
talks for 2009 were made.
Following publication of the Danish Red Cross note in the
Journal, Simon had received information that they were issued
for use on board the hospital ship Jutlandia in the Far East during
the Korean war. The denominations were in Danish Currency and
are known to exist as 5 ore, 25 ore, 1 krone, and 5 kroner notes.
Any currency used by international service personnel during that
conflict could be converted for use onboard ship.
A letter from a resident of the Seychelles had been received by
Simon requesting membership of the chapter. It was decided that
membership should only be accepted from those likely to be able
to attend meetings. Laurence brought to our attention his concern
that Krause was understood to be reissuing the SCWPM Volume 2
(general issues to 1960) as a new edition with a new cover, but with
IBNS Journal 47.4

The next meeting will take place on Saturday, the 29th of

November 2008.
Holland Chapter
Ed van den Brul, President
Biezenwal 13
Oudewater 3421 BE
The Netherlands
vdbrul@[Link]
[Link]
London Chapter
Pam West, Chairperson
P.O. Box 257
Sutton
Surrey SM3 9WW
United Kingdom
pamwestbritnotes@[Link]
[Link]
August 2008 meeting: The London Chapter had its regular
monthly meeting on the last Thursday of August when the main
event of the evening was a showing of the film The Counterfeiters.
This was a most interesting and enjoyable film, although it did
play a bit fast and loose with the facts in true Hollywood style. The
film tells the story of the Nazi plot to ruin the British economy
in World War II by counterfeiting millions of pounds worth of
Bank of England banknotes. The original plan was to drop these
over England but in the end they were used mainly to pay Nazi
spies and informants across the Continent. The film concentrated
on the human story of Jewish concentration camp inmates who
were forced to use their engraving and printing skills to support
the Nazi war effort, and how they attempted to balance efforts to
sabotage production with the urge to survive the most dangerous of
situations. In the final days of the war the Nazis attempted to destroy
all evidence of their efforts but of course thousands of the notes did
survive and are readily available to todays collectors. For many years
the Bank of England tried to confiscate any notes which came to
light, making it difficult to build a collection of them, or indeed to
deal in them, but they are much more relaxed about them nowadays.
We all agreed the film was a moving portrait of humans trying to
survive in horrific circumstances even if there was little historic
accuracy left after the scriptwriters has done their work.
October 2008 Congress: Once again this major event in the
banknote worlds calendar was held at the Mermaid Conference
Centre in Londons Blackfriars on Friday the 3rd and Saturday
the 4th of October. This year the event was sponsored by the
London auction house DNW. The organising committee, drawn
from the membership of the IBNS London Chapter, was chaired
by Andy Georgiou and included Mike OGrady, Pam West,
63

Simon Narbeth and Clair Lobel We enjoyed an excellent display

prepared by Peter Stratton and featuring some of his collection
of the beautiful Isle of Man Government series of notes. The
display was put together by Robin Hill. Once again Jonathan
Callaway contributed an article for the Congress programme
and once again we were appreciative of the terrific help provided
by Brian Ascroft and Ken Hutton on the front desk. This year
they were joined by Caroline Weiner. Feedback from the dealers
and collectors who attended was very positive and the event
was deemed to be yet another great success. This has of course
encouraged us to start preparation for next years Congress, which
will be held at the same location.
Melbourne Chapter
Ian Yarde, Secretary
P.O. Box 95
Flinders Lane
Melbourne, VIC 8009
Australia
[Link]@[Link]
July 2008 meeting: Meeting number 269 of the Melbourne
chapter of the IBNS was held on Thursday, the 17th of July, 2008.
President Stephen Prior opened the meeting at 8.10 p.m. and
welcomed all attending. Members present were Frank Robinson,
Mauricio Diaz-Chavarro, Les Thomas, Brian Butcher, Antony
Bassiliadis, Alan Flint, Girts Riverans, David White, Neville
Cuthbert, Ian Yarde, Bill Xynos, Michael McCarthy, Tony Alsop
and Rion van Zyl Smit. The chapter had two visitors attending.
Our visitors were Trevor Wilkin (Sydney chapter) and John
Gerzelis. Apologies were received from Ted Morrison, Don
Cleveland and Eyad Abou Zaki.
Recent Acquisitions: Antony Bassiliadis tabled two Egyptian notes; a
10-piastre note from 1940 and a 50-pound note from 1951.
General Business:
Brian Butcher commented on the ever increasing inflation rate in
Zimbabwe and showed a newspaper report that said Giesecke and
Devrient will no longer supply Zimbabwe with security paper.
Mauricio Diaz-Chavarro advised that he would not be able
to give a presentation at the November meeting as previously
scheduled. Girts Riverans said he would now give a talk, the
topic to be advised.
Girts Riverans gave an update on our bulk order of Vario note
holders noting that the placing of the order was delayed due
to unavoidable circumstances. Orders will now be available for
collection in August.
Bill Xynos reminded members of the ANDA show to be held
in September at the Melbourne Tennis Centre. Members with
exhibits will be entitled to free entry on each day of the fair.
Alan Flint asked if there was any update on the Perth convention
in November. Trevor Wilkin was able to advise that about 18
people from Sydney will be staying on after the weekend. They
are planning a two to three day trip with bus and driver to the
Margaret River region of WA.
Meeting Topic:
Frank Robinson gave an extensive PowerPoint presentation
concerning the Hungarian patriot Lajos Kossuth and the banknotes
of his time as well as those later notes featuring his portrait.
The meeting closed at 9.40 p.m.

64

Frank Robinson with a selection of notes relating to the Hungarian patriot

Lajos Kossuth who was the subject of Franks presentation at the July
chapter meeting.

August 2008 meeting: Meeting number 270 of the Melbourne

Chapter of the IBNS was held on Thursday, the 21st of August
2008. President Stephen Prior opened the meeting at 8.00 p.m. and
welcomed all attending. Members present were David White, Antony
Bassiliadis, Neville Cuthbert, Les Thomas, Michael McCarthy, Ted
Morrison, Ian Yarde, Girts Riverans, Tony Alsop, Mauricio DiazChavarro, Frank Robinson, Bill Xynos and Rion van Zyl Smit.
Recent Acquisitions:
Ted Morrison tabled a one-shilling note issued by the East African
Currency Board in 1943. Although the condition showed the
note had seen better days, Ted was still happy to add it to his
collection of notes featuring a portrait of King George VI.
Frank Robinson showed some recent auction purchases that
included German notgeld and a five mil-reis hand signed note from
Brazil. There is a portrait of the Baron do Rio Branco on the front
and a very attractive allegorical scene with two females and a child
(possibly representing Industry, Learning and Youth) on the back.
The note was printed by the American Bank Note Company.
Ian Yarde displayed the latest issues from Papua New Guinea, the
five and ten-kina notes completing the polymer series.
Tony Alsop presented an Australian 50-dollar note with what
appeared to be significant ink smudges that may or may not have
occurred during the printing process. The jury is still out.
General Business:
Bill Xynos reminded members of the ANDA fair being held on
the12th, 13th and 14th of September at the Melbourne Tennis
Centre. Arrangements were made to publicize the IBNS and the
Melbourne chapter. Members with an exhibit or who assist with
manning the information table will receive free entry on all days.
Frank Robinson advised that the Numismatic Association
of Victoria will be striking a medallion to commemorate the
centenary of Scouting in Australia this year. Any inquiries may
be directed to navic@[Link] for more details and
prices. Frank also tabled a new book by George Dean entitled,
A Potpourri of Queensland Numismatica.
IBNS Journal 47.4

 David White informed the meeting that two of our members

(Don Cleveland and Alan Flint) received Honourable Mentions
in the 2007 IBNS Literary Awards announced at the Annual
General Meeting held in Memphis in June this year. Don
was commended for Right on the Money, the Story Behind the
Banknote: Trinidad and Tobagos $100 and Alan for A Licence
to Destroy Moneythe Recollections of a Man Who Burned over a
Billion Dollars Worth of Notes.
Meeting Topic: German Inflation Money by Neville Cuthbert.
Neville explained that his assembly of post WWI German notes was
the major anomaly in his collection. His premier collecting interests
coincide with countries he has visited or has had a connection with
at some time and Germany is not one of those countries.
Nevertheless, some years ago when the inflation notes were so
plentiful and inexpensive he put together many of the issues. It
was only when researching his presentation that he realized there
were still some notes required to complete the set.
He spoke about the historical events that created the
hyperinflation and the economic consequences. Assisted
by a PowerPoint show, he displayed notes with incredible
denominations that were almost totally worthless in their
purchasing power at the time.

Alan Flint displays an Australian government pamphlet about rationing

issued during WWII.

Frank Robinson showed three JIM notes. One from Netherlands

Indies and two Oceania replicas: half shilling and one shilling.
Alan Flint advised that at one time Note Printing Australia tested
the paper used by the Japanese for JIM notes and they graded it very
highly, this indicated that the Japanese intended the notes to be in use
for an extended period and not merely as an interim measure.

Nevilles topic created a great deal of interest and several other

members (Frank Robinson, Les Thomas and Stephen Prior) brought
along their own extensive collections to show to the chapter.

Eyad Abou Zaki displayed a series of colourful brochures dealing

with the current banknote issues from the Faeroe Islands that
feature Faroese animals and landscapes.

Stephen Prior moved a vote of thanks on behalf of the meeting.

The meeting closed at 9.20 p.m.

General Business:
Ian Yarde reminded members that the Perth convention was only
weeks away. He made an appeal for donations for the auction that
will be held at the convention to assist in financing the event.
Brian Butcher updated the meeting on some developments with
the inflation situation in Zimbabwe. His material included an
article from the Melbourne newspaper The Age, from the 1st of
August humorously entitled Zero Worship showing a cheque
written for the amount of one quadrillion, 72 trillion, 418
billion and three million dollars! As reported in the article That
converted to $120,000 on 23 July, the day the cheque was written.
To give you an idea of Zimbabwes inflation rate, the same amount
was worth just $60,700 a week later.
Alan Flint said that, in the course of business, Universal
Rare Coin and Banknote Co. had obtained three lead papal
seals dating from around 500 years ago. Subsequent research
has found that they are officially recorded as missing from
the Vatican, although there may also have been an English
connection. There is an article on the find in the October issue
of Australasian Coin and Banknote Magazine.
Bill Xynos thanked all those members who assisted at the
recent ANDA show held in Melbourne. Chapter members Bill,
Frank Robinson and Neville Cuthbert were numbered among
the winners in various awards that were presented by the NAV.
Frank responded by praising the considerable organizational
work done by Bill for the show.

September 2008 meeting: Meeting number 271 of the

Melbourne Chapter of the International Bank Note Society was
held on Thursday, the 18th of September, 2008. President Stephen
Prior opened the meeting at 8.00 p.m. and welcomed all present.
Members attending were Frank Robinson, Michael McCarthy,
Girts Riverans, Brian Butcher, Bill Xynos, Eyad Abou Zaki, Alan
Flint, David White, Neville Cuthbert, Ian Yarde, Luk Shing Yip,
Mauricio Diaz-Chavarro and Rion van Zyl Smit. Apologies were
received from Antony Bassiliadis, Don Cleveland and Ted Morrison.
Recent Acquisitions: Alan Flint tabled an information pamphlet
issued by the Australian government during WWII entitled
Answers to Your Coupon Queries. The pamphlet, dated 1943 and
with a cover price of two pence, discussed numerous aspects of
rationing in place at the time. It was interesting to note that H.
C. Coombs, one of Australias most distinguished public servants,
and later an Australian note signatory, was shown as Director of
the Rationing Committee.

Meeting Topic: Benjamin Boyd and the Royal Bank of Australiaa

New Zealand Connection by Stephen Prior. Stephen recounted
how, in his younger years, he had visited the Moorabbin public
library on numerous occasions to borrow Australian Bank Notes
18171963 by G. W. Tomlinson. This pioneering work on
Australian banknotes was the inspiration for Stephen (and many
others) to begin collecting the paper money of this country. Many

IBNS Journal 47.4

65

years later at the 1999 Australian IBNS convention in Melbourne,

Stephen mentioned this episode during a talk he presented. He
was delighted to learn afterwards that Tomlinson himself was in
the audience and that he had warmly appreciated Stephens words.

Stephen read some passages from Maria Diamonds Ben Boyd

of Boydtown that gave some insight into the activities of this
colourful, if not entirely reputable, entrepreneurial character from
Australias colonial past.

Within the pages of Australian Banknotes 18171963 there is one

page devoted to the Royal Bank of Australia (18391850) and its
founding by Benjamin Boyd. The entry took Stephens attention
but the information shown on this financial institution is scant,
only stating that Boyd founded the bank to further his vast
whaling and pastoral enterprises and that the institution did not
engage actively in banking. It goes on to say that the failure of the
seasons and falsified accounts resulted in closure in 1850 and the
liquidation took many years to complete. The book has a single
illustration of a five-shilling note dated 1847.
In 1982 Michael Vort-Ronald published Banks of Issue in Australia
containing much new information on notes issued by the many
private banks in Australia during the period 18171910 and
including some more detail on the Royal Bank of Australia, also
referred to as Boyds. Vort-Ronald gives particulars of dates of
formation and registration of Boyds and relates the reasons that
lead to its downfall. The text also mentions Boyds enterprises in
the South Sea Island labour trade and his attempts to establish
a Pacific colony prior to his death at the hands of natives on
Guadalcanal.
In February 2006 Stephen made a trip to New Zealand to consult
with his fellow editors of a forthcoming book on the banknotes
of the New Zealand trading banks. At the time he visited
the Auckland Museum and examined some of their archives.
Unfortunately the museum had only one banknote and that
proved to be a forgery. However, within their archives there was
a remarkable and previously unknown document connecting
Benjamin Boyd, the Royal Bank of Australia and the government
of New Zealand.
The document was a large-size, unissued government debenture
for one hundred pounds. Under British rule, the islands of New
Zealand had originally been part of the colony of New South
Wales, but in 1840 New Zealand became a separate colony. In
the very early years of its existence the financial status of New
Zealand was extremely fragile and it seems that a plan was hatched
for Boyd and the Royal Bank of Australia to make a substantial
loan to the government of the fledgling colony. In the end this loan
did not eventuate but matters progressed as far as printing of the
debenture which is believed to have been prepared in the year 1843.
The debenture document is printed on buff-coloured paper and
is headed NEW ZEALAND with ONE HUNDRED POUNDS
underneath; the words GOVERNMENT DEBENTURE appear
about half-way down the document. There is a coat of arms
under the ONE HUNDRED POUNDS with a panel for a serial
number to the left of the arms and the denomination (100) to
its right. (Anomalously, the old Hanoverian coat of arms was used
despite the period being six years into the reign of Queen Victoria
who was barred from the Hanoverian succession, as a female,
under the Salic law.) The top portion of the document consists of
the debenture proper, with specific reference to the Royal Bank of
Australia, and the lower section has the interest coupons. There is
a crown in each corner of the debenture which was intended to be
signed by the Governor.

66

Stephen Prior with the book Ben Boyd of Boydtown and a photocopy of
the unissued New Zealand debenture.

On behalf of the members, Alan Flint thanked Stephen for his

most interesting presentation. The meeting closed at 9.30 p.m.
Midwest Chapter
John Helm, President
1827 17th Avenue
Grafton, WI 53024
United States
sspmanager@[Link]
August 2008 meeting: Albert Pick Picnic and extended Show
and Tell! Chris Roth has prepared a map showing where we meet,
which was made as a means of making it easier for new members
to attend.
August exhibitors included:
John Helm: Civil War soldier bounty receipts
Hugh Swofford: attempts at issuing metal $1 coins
Jim Adams: Queen Victoria seal, and Hundi pieces from India
Jeff Gaffke: Spanish checks issued by the Banco de Espana in the
1860s
Neil Shafer: Venezuela new set, ANA memorabilia from ANA
Baltimore, and a Numismatic Award
Chris Roth: Terrestrial Television converter voucher
Leon Saryan: Van check (Vanis the name of a city), vingt Francs
of 1942 (vingt is twenty in French)
September 2008 meeting: Chris part of the program was
presented in the show and tell. Neil Shafer presented his program
on Introduction to Philippine Guerilla Currency. He showed
a number of different examples including local issues, a full set
of Cagayan stamp notes, Iloilo specimens among others. There
was also a MacArthur signed 5 pesos from Iloilo. In addition, the
following new business was covered:
A Get Well Soon card will be sent to member George Conrad.
The possibility of having an auction every other month was
discussed and approved. November will be the next auction.

IBNS Journal 47.4

 Chris Roth presented the map he made to make it easier for new
members to find our location. They turned out very nice.
Chris is also designing a new club logo.
Minutes are now being sent to the secretary of NOW for
inclusion in their newsletter.
Leon Saryan is in need of photos of Milwaukee numismatic
functions for the NOW website.
Our minutes will also be sent to the newly constituted Southern
California chapter. Possibly send them a short snorter.
Welcome back Art Petri!
September exhibitors included:
John Helm: War Between the States, Confederate notes and a
news article about Chinese Olympic notes,
Art Petri: 1910 Russian 100 ruble note,
Jim Adams: Western Samoa commemoratives,
Ken Johnson: W notes,
Leon Saryan: Wilmington, Delaware check, and weird Chinese
hell note,
Jeff Gaffke: W notes and things,
Chris Roth: Cineplex chain associate pass, and a Cineplex chain
rubber stamp,
Gene Mitchell: W notes,
Jim Downey: Portugal note signed by Joe Louis.
Perth Chapter
Heather Arthurson, Secretary
P.O. Box 214
Como, 6952 WA
Australia
IBNS-perth@[Link]
May 2008 meeting: Our normal Sunday morning meeting was
its usual interesting event with nine members in attendance. After
the formalities, general business discussed the IBNS Education
Committee and the members discussed various ways that the
chapter could be involved including the sharing of PowerPoint
presentations.
The theme for this meeting was Medals and Awards on banknotes
and the members showed a good range for this not so easy theme.
Several members brought the Malta 1951 1 with the Cross of
St. George. Other notes were a Thailand 10 baht note with the
King wearing his medals; a New Zealand $100 featuring Lord
Rutherford of Nelson with the Nobel Prize Medal; a Royal Bank
of Scotland 5 featuring the British Open Trophy for golf; a
50 zloty note from Poland featuring the Grunwald Cross; a 25
ruble note from Russia featuring Alexander III; a Ceylon $100
with George IV; a note from Brazil featuring the Marques de
Tamandare Duque de Caxais; an Indonesian 1 rupiah with
President Sukarno; a 1 bolivar note from Bolivia featuring Simon
Bolivar; an 1899 50 rubles note from Russia with Nicholas I in
uniform with medals.
This months talk was from Brent Arthurson The Banknote Issues
of the German Democratic Republic from 1948 1989. Brent gave,
as usual, a very informative talk and many of the notes which
were featured were replacement notes from his collection.
Show and Tell again attracted a wide range of notes reflecting the
eclectic interests of the Perth members. Notes on show were:
the Zimbabwean $200,000 and $10 million replacement notes
the new Zimbabwean $10, $25 and $50 million versions printed
in Germany by Giesecke & Devrient,
IBNS Journal 47.4

a $1 East Caribbean Currency Authority,

a Bank of Mauritius 5 rupees,
a 50 cent Central Bank of Bahamas,
a 1 States of Guernsey with the hard to find Brown signature,
a Yugoslavia 5000 dinar replacement note,
a 100 drachma from Greece,
a Cape of Good Hope 40 rixdollars and 200 rixdollars,
and a $1 from the Republic of Liberia.
Heather Arthurson predictably had some new notes featuring females:
a 2008 new issue 20 bolivar note from Venezuela,
and a 1981 (Pick146) 100 schilling note from Austria.
Brent Arthurson produced some new replacement notes:
1981 and 2004 Egypt 1 notes,
and a 2004 50 note.
He also showed us 1, 5, and 10 mark WWII German
Winterhilfswerk notes. These notes were printed for specific uses,
e.g., to pay for rent, food, gas etc and were canceled when used.
Brent also had a WWII Allied surrender pass: these were dropped
over Europe in 1944-45 and signed by American General Dwight
D Eisenhower, who later became President of the USA in 1953.
June 2008 meeting: Again another long weekend in Perth, but
this did not deter 12 members from enjoying a lively meeting.
General business covered the upcoming Australian IBNS Convention
in Perth including advertising, donations, and the souvenir card.
Colin mentioned that the movie, The Counterfeiters about Operation
Bernhardt was now showing at Luna Cinemas. A promotional
pamphlet was handed around for all to see.
This months theme of sport was a tricky one but as usual the
members were able to find a good range of notes:
Central Bank of Barbados $5 featuring cricketer Sir Frank
Worrell,
Bank of Papua New Guinea 2 kina note featuring the South
Pacific Games,
a National Bank of Congo 50 makuta note with a Soccer Stadium,
a New Zealand $10 commemorative note featuring various
water sports,
a $10 Singapore featuring 5 sports. Soccer, tennis, sailing,
swimming, athletics,
a 1989, 20/- Kenya with a sports stadium,
a $5 Reserve Bank of New Zealand with Sir Edmund Hillary,
mountain climbing,
some funny money produced by the Melbourne Cup Club,
a Scotland 100 featuring Leisure and Tourism Golf,
the 10 Clydesdale Bank commemorative for the Olympic
Games in Melbourne in 2006,
the 10 Bank of England featuring cricket, and
an Ulster Bank Ltd. 5 with George Best.
Three talks this month showed some new aspects of paper
money that all members found fascinating. Steve Milner gave an
interesting and informative talk titled UAPTA. What is that? It is
an obsolete currency from Africa. The letters represent one Unit
of Account of the Preferential Trading Area. The concept was to
issue a currency, similar to the euro that would be common to
several countries of Eastern and Southern Africa. Steve showed a
20 UAPTA travelers cheque issued in 1982, which remained legal
currency until 1997. It was issued by the Eastern and Southern
African Trade and Development Bank.
67

Robin Hughes presented a talk about Counterfoils. These are

the complementary part of a bank cheque, receipt or document
containing the same particulars. These are produced as postal
notes, cheques and banknotes. Robin showed us a fabulous
selection of items, with counterfoils still attached, that showed
just how varied and interesting these can be.
Darryn Santich gave a short talk about a new note that he had
purchased. This was a Bill of Exchange for 4000 from Boston,
dated March 29th,1854. Darryn had done some extensive research
about this note and had a very interesting story to tell. The note
was issued by a ship-owning company which traded between
Liverpool and Australia. It featured a ship which had on the prow
a figure of a seaman wearing a Blue Jacket. The ship went down
in the Falklands in 1869, and the really interesting part of the
story is that the part of the ship with the Blue Jacket seaman was
washed up on the shores of Rottnest Island, off Perth. Darryn
will, no doubt, research this further.
Show and Tell, incorporating Favourite 5 and New Acquisitions,
again showed the enthusiasm that the Perth members have for
the hobby to share their knowledge, and is another one of the
highlights of our meetings.
Colin Meikle: Four Clydesdale Bank 10 notes: two with the
prefix A/AK with two different signatures and two with prefix
A/CA with two different signatures. A complete set of the last
series of the Bank of Scotland, one of which won the Banknote
of the Year 2008.
Robin Hughes: Chinese Engineering Mining Co. Ltd. $1 with
counterfoil, a 1st series Queensland postal note that doubled as
a telegram, a South Africa Republic 1 printed on green paper;
and a Government of Seychelles 50 rupees (1954),
Neville Harlow : Banque de LIndo-Chine 1 piastre, possibly a
forgery. Neville asked how to tell the difference between the real
and the forgery. Brent advised that the watermark on the forgery
was overprinted and not a true watermark. Brent said that he
would bring in notes from his collection to show the difference.
Gisella Biddle: Royal Monetary Authority of Bhutan note (this
was the first note she had ever bought); a Chinese 100 yuan
note commemorating the 2nd Millennium; a Bank of Spain 1000
pesetas (1925); and a Central Bank of Brazil 10 reais,
Brandon Biddle Bank of England 10; Yugoslavia WWII 100
dinara; Clydesdale Bank 5; States of Guernsey 1; Central
Bank of Peru 5 soles de oro; and Poland 1000 zlotych,
Darryn Santich 50 francs Banque de France (1933); Banque
de LIndo- Chine 100 francs (1920); Banque de LAlgerie 500
francs; a 1942 Banque Nationale de Belgique 100 belgas; and
a 1942 100 francs Banque Nationale de Belgique. Also a Royal
Bank of Scotland 1 (1955); Hong Kong & Shanghai Banking
Corporation $100 (1980); Banco Central de S. Tome e Principe
5,000, 10,000 and 20,000 dobras; Central Bank of Seychelles
25, 50, and 100 rupees; Government of Gibraltar 5 (1988)
and 10 (1986); States of Jersey 10/-; Bank of England 5;
Commonwealth of Australia 1 (1959), and a cheque book
from the Bank of British West Africa,
Brent Arthurson: Romania WW1 German occupation 1000
lei (1917); 100 lei (1921); 5,000 lei ([Link] printing);
500 lei (1933) and 1000 lei (1934) with King Carol II; a
Bulgarian hybrid polymer 20 leva (2005), Argentina 100
pesos replacement note (2006), and a German WWII
Steuergutscheine 3.80 marks (1945-46).

68

July 2008 meeting: Ten members attended this meeting

and again there was a lot of lively discussion and showing of
new notes. General business again covered the IBNS Perth
Convention, congratulations were extended to Steve Milner
for his new position as an IBNS Director at Large, and Neville
Harlow noted one of the letters in the latest issue of IBNS Journal
by Stewart Westdal, president of the new Southern California
chapter. Stewart made a call to arms for more chapters (hear
hear). Following the success of the Perth Chapter it is good to see
another chapter in the IBNS.
This months theme was fruit on banknotes and again a wide
range of notes were on show from the members.
Heather Arthurson: Tunisia dinar (1973); Comoros Islands
500 francs (1976); Morocco 10 dirhams (1970); and a New
Caledonia 20 francs (1963),
Brent Arthurson: Australia 5 (1960); Malaya JIM $1 (1942);
Malaya JIM $10 (1942); Fiji $1 (1980); Cambodia 10 riels
(1987); Laos 500 kip (1988); Algeria 5 francs (1941); French
West Africa 100 francs (1950); Equatorial Guinea 100 pesetas
(1969); Guinea 10 sylis (1960); Somalia 5 shilin (1983);
Swaziland 20 emalangeni (1974); and a Bahamas $ (1984),
Colin Meikle: West African States 1000 franc (1996); Scotland
1 (1850); and an IBNS Souvenir De La Rue from 1986,
Darryn Santich: French Antilles 10 francs (1964); Comoros
5000 francs (1985); Belgium 50 francs (1948); and a French
West Africa 100 francs (1950),
Ron Mathieson: French Equatorial Africa 100 francs (1948);
French West Africa 1000 francs (1961); and a Madagascar 10
francs (not dated),
Neville Harlow: Czechoslovakia 1000 korun (1934); and a
France 100 francs (1937-39),
Gisella Biddl: Costa Rica 5 colones (1989); and a Yugoslavia
100 dinara (1941),
Brandon Biddle: United Arab Emirates 10 dirhams (2000),
Bob Malcolm: Malaya JIM notes $1, $5, $10 replacements; and
a $10 fantasy.
New acquisitions were many and varied:
Heather Arthurson: England 10 (1975) featuring Florence
Nightingale; Mauritius 20 rupees (1985) featuring Lady
Jugnauth; Columbia 10000 pesos with Policarpa Salavarrieta; and
a Philippines 200 piso (2001) with Gloria Macapagal Arroyo,
Brent Arthurson: New Zealand $5 (2005) with Sir Edmund
Hillary; Lithuania 1 litas replacement (1994); Estonia 1 kroon
replacement (1992); Egypt 50 piastres replacement (1989);
Egypt 25 piastres replacement (2004); and a Seychelles 20
rupees specimen (1977),
Colin Meikle: Scotland 1, 1961, Bank of Scotland specimen;
Bank of Scotland 5 16/02/1945 with a brown reverse; Bank
of Scotland 5 01/09/1945 with a yellow reverse; and 5
10/09/1952 with black denomination panels on front,
Darryn Santich: Ecuador 31, Bank of Ecuador Bill of
Exchange (1904); Bahamas 4/- (1953); England 10 (1975);
Fiji $5 ,$20 $50 (2002); Algeria 20 francs (1948); 1791 France
5 livres assignat,
Neville Harlow: 1967 Great Britain 5 with helmeted Britannia,
Brandon Biddle: Thailand 60 baht commemorative issue (1987).
A Trash and Treasure was held to raise funds for the November
IBNS Convention. A total of A$290 was raised.

IBNS Journal 47.4

August 2008 meeting: Our meetings continue to be well

attended with 15 members at the Sunday morning get together.
After the preliminary formalities, general business was lively and
the discussion included Steve Milner thanking the members
for supporting him in his new role as Director at Large. Brent
Arthurson suggested that a list be compiled of banknote websites
for new members and collectors to access, updating IBNS flyers,
and the IBNS convention (souvenir certificate, calendar &
donations). Brent Arthurson also brought along an article that
appeared in The West Australian newspaper that related to New
Zealanders getting fleeced by forged notes. Unfortunately the
notes referred to did not exist. Brent responded to The West
Australian and a further comment and retraction was published
two days later. Heather Arthurson reported on the special
presentation at Rare Coin Co. by Ed Dauer. Ed and his wife, with
the cooperation of John Pettit, have produced one of the finest
books to grace our coffee tables for many a long time. Shane
Rivett advised of a new 100 paanga note from Tonga that has
been issued for the coronation of the new king.
The theme for this months meeting was Ships and again the
members managed to find in their collections an amazing number
relating to the theme, including:
Robin Hughes: Netherlands Antilles 2 Gulden (1964); Danzig
10,000 Mark (1923); South Africa 1 (1931); Liberia $1 (1863),
Heather Arthurson: Scotland 10 (2003); Australia $5 (1985);
Australia $20 (2005),
Brent Arthurson: Emden notgeld 50 pfennig (1918); Memel 50
marks (1922); Germany 100 marks (1910); West Germany 10 marks
(1960); Russia 1000 rubles (1995); Russia 500,000 rubles (1995),
Colin Meikle: Scotland Ship Bank 20/- (1829); Union Bank
of Scotland 5 (1952); Bank of Scotland 1 (1961); Bank
of Scotland 5 (1968); Bank of Scotland 5 (1982); Bank of
Scotland 5 (1995); Clydesdale & North of Scotland Bank
1 (1956); Clydesdale & North of Scotland Bank 1 (1962);
Clydesdale Bank 50 (2001); National Commercial Bank of
Scotland 1 (1961); National Commercial Bank of Scotland 1
(1968); Royal Bank of Scotland 10 (1969),
Bob Malcolm: China 10 yuan (1914); South Africa 2 rand
(1961); South Africa 1 (1944); Singapore $50 (1987); Greece 50
drachma (1964); Cambodia 1 riel (1956-72); China 5 fen (1953),
Ron Mathieson: South Africa 5 (1959); Guinea 100 escudos
(1971); French Equatorial Africa 50 francs (undated); Djibouti
500 francs (undated); Ghana 5 (1962); Sierra Leone 100
Leones 1990,
Brandon Biddle: Hong Kong $10 (1989): Yugoslavia 20 dinara
(1978); Singapore $5 (1976); Indonesia 100 rupiah (1992);
Singapore $10 (1988),
Gisella Biddle: Kuwait 1 dinar (1993); Australia $10 (1998);
Guyana $20 (1989); Brazil 5 cruzeiros (1962); Peru 1000 soles
(1979); Spain 1 peseta (1953),
Neville Harlow: Angola 50 centavos (1923); Spain 1 peseta
(1953); Trinidad and Tobago $2 (1939), New Zealand 1 (1967),
Darryn Santich: Djibouti 10,000 francs (1984); Burundi 5,000
francs (1997); Cameroun 100 francs (1962); Sierra Leone 100
leones (1990); Mauritius 50 rupees (1967),
Steve Milner: Mauritius 50 rupees; South Africa 1 (1933); South
Africa 10 (1943); South Africa 5 (1946); South Africa 5 (1952),
Colin Briggs: China 10 yuan (1914); China 5 fen (1953);
1921 Germany 50 pfennig, notgeld Stettin; 1921 Germany 50
pfennig, notgeld Hamburg; Cambodia 1 riel (1972); Macao 1
pataca (1945); Hong Kong $10 (1986),
Shane Rivett: Papua New Guinea 100 kina (2005); Algeria 100
dinars (1964),
IBNS Journal 47.4

Jack Stephens: Yugoslavia 20 dinars (1978); USA Military 50

cents copy; Antarctica $5 (2001); South Africa 10 rand (1961);
Thailand 1 baht; Scotland 1 (1956); Peru 1000 soles (1981);
Hungary 100 pengo (1945).
New acquisitions for the past month were:
Brent Arthurson: 1984 Italy 10,000 lire replacement; 1999
Yugoslavia 200 dinara, unlisted; 1978 Egypt 10 replacement;
England, no denomination,1945, PNL, propaganda leaflet WWII
Colin Meikle: Scotland - British Linen Bank 5 (1951) (prefix
K/9 one for dog lovers): Scotland - British Linen Bank 5
(1968) (final British Linen Bank type of 5),
Brandon Biddle: India 5 rupees (1940); Mozambique 50
escudos (1970); Mozambique 100 escudos (1961); Mozambique
500 escudos (1967); Mozambique 1000 escudos (1972); all
Mozambique notes with overprints,
Gisella Biddle: France 20 francs (1997); Madagascar 1000 francs
(1994); West African States 1000 francs (1993); England 5 (2002),
Neville Harlow: Afghanistan 50 afghans (1939),
Darryn Santich:France 60, 70, 80, 90, 100 livres (1790);
New Caledonia 100, 500, 1,000, 5,000 francs uncirculated
specimen set; Central African Republic 5,000 francs (1980);
French Equatorial Africa 50 francs (1957); Morocco 5 francs
(1941); Slovakia 5,000 korun (1944); Bank of London & South
America 200 sterling Bill of Exchange,
Steve Milner: 1891 Great Britain 5 (Durham Bank cut
canceled); Zimbabwe $750,000 ZA replacement (2007);
Mauritius 100 rupees new issue with 3 signatures (2007); Mauritius
200 rupees new issue with 3 signatures (2007); Scotland 50 ZZ
replacement (2007); Mauritius 10 rupees replacement; Trinidad
and Tobago $1 replacement (1964); Zimbabwe $500 new serial not
previously known (2001); Zimbabwe $20 (1983); Great Britain
10/-, last replacement M80,
Jack Stephens: Afghanistan 50 afghans (1925); 50 afghans
(1928); 10 afghans (1927); 10 afghans (1928); 5 rupees (1920).
Over 100 bank notes were presented at this meeting which
is really pleasing. It shows how enthusiastic everyone is and
the amount of research that everyone is doing. Bodes well for
increased knowledge for all of our members. Well done everyone.
And the great part about it all is that everyone is having fun!
September 2008 meeting: At this meeting we welcomed Rob
Jackman for the first time. Rob lives in Albany, 400 kilometers
southeast of Perth, and is the owner of the Rare Coin Company,
which despite its name deals in banknotes.
Despite being Fathers Day, 15 members and one visitor attended
the meeting; another excellent turnout.
General Business discussed issues relating to the upcoming IBNS
Convention in Perth.
Brent Arthurson announced that Colin Meikle has received an
IBNS 2007 Achievement Award for Best Journal Article called
14 George Street Edinburgh. Members congratulated Colin on his
excellent effort.
Neville Harlow advised that the PNS Ashfield Fair would be held
on the 11th and12th of October 2008. He also advised that an
article in the PNS Journal mentioned that IBNS Perth chapter
members had won the winning displays for the past three years.
This months theme was Education and again a large number of
notes emerged to educate the members:
69

 Neville Harlow: Belgium 50 francs (1923); Czechoslovakia 1000

korun (1934),
Steve Milner: Mauritius 500 rupees replacement (1998);
Mauritius 500 rupees (2001),
Robin Hughes: Brazil 1 cruzeiro (1944); Brazil 2 cruzeiros (1944),
Colin Meikle: England 20 (1994): Bank of Ireland 5 (2003);
Austria 1,000 schilling (1983); Clydesdale Bank 20 (1985);
Clydesdale Bank 100 (2001); North of Scotland Bank 1
(1935); North of Scotland Bank 20 (1943),
Ron Mathieson: Angola 5 angolares (1947); Eritrea 1 nakfa
(1997); Gabon 500 francs (1978); Zambia 5 kwacha (undated),
Heather Arthurson: Costa Rica 10,000 colones (2002);
Indonesia 10,000 rupiah (1985); Bank of Ireland 5 (1999);
Italy 1,000 lire (1991); Mauritius 20 rupees (1993); Clydesdale
Bank 10 (2003),
Darryn Santich: Ghana 200 cedis (19860; Chad 500 francs
(1974); Central African States 500 francs (2002); West African
States 1000 francs (2003),
Colin Briggs: Great Britain 1 (1981-84); Brazil 50000
cruzeiros (1984), Brazil 50 cruzados novos (1989); Guatemala 5
quetzales (1992); Kenya 10 shillings (1993),
Bob Malcolm: Cambodia 1000 riels (undated); Indonesia
10,000 rupiah (1985),
Gisella Biddle: Italy 1000 lire (1990); Kenya 10 shillings (1991),
Brandon Biddle: Singapore $2 (2007),
Rob Jackman: Cambodia 1000 riels (1973); Scotland 5 (2005);
Brazil 50,000 cruzeiros (1984-86),
Brent Arthurson: Brazil 500,000 cruzeiros (1993); Brazil 1000
cruzeiros reais (1993); Cambodia 10 reals (1993); Estonia 2
krooni (1992); Georgia 5 laris (1995); DDR 5 marks (1964);
DDR 20 marks (1975); DDR 200 marks (1985); Ghana
200 cedis (1985); Guatemala 5 quetzales (1990); Greece 100
drachma (1967); Nicaragua 500 cordobas (1985); Germany 5
mark, circa 1920 (Kindergeld Childrens Money); Germany 10
marks circa 1920 (Kindergeld); Germany 20 marks circa 1920
(Kindergeld),
Shane Rivett: Ireland 5 (1996);1949 Australia 300 treasury
cheque signed by Sir Paul Hasluck.
Show & Tell produced some interesting items from Colin Briggs.
A USA 1 cigar (shop currency), a USA wooden nickel, circa 1950
from Butler, Pennsylvania), and five USA wooden nickels from
Raleigh County, Beckley Bank.
New acquisitions again showed that the Perth members are
acquiring a wide range of notes demonstrating their eclectic
interests:
Steve Milner: Zimbabwe $50 billion special Agro-Cheque
replacement, and a Zimbabwean set of the new banknotes $1 to
$100,
Ron Mathieson: Congo Republic 1000 francs (1992);
Mozambique 1000 escudos (1972),
Heather Arthurson: Poland 20 zlotych (1936); Greece 50
Drachma (1978); Kyrgyzstan 50 som (2002); Austria 500
schillings (1997),
Darryn Santich: Spain 1000 pesatas (1928); French Indochina
20 piastres (1936); 1954 French Indochina 100 piastres
(Cambodia Issue); 1917 France (Roubaix & Tourcoing) 100
francs (Emergency local issue); 1917 France (Montmedy) 50
francs local emergency issue; Mauritania 1000 ouguiya (1996),
Bob Malcolm:1930 Japan 10 yen facsimile (set of 4 propaganda
notes dropped over Japan towards end of war),
Gisella Biddle: Spain 50 pesetas (1928); France 1000 francs
(1943); Algeria 5 francs (1941),
70

Brandon Biddle: New Zealand $1 (1977-81); New Zealand $1

(1989-92); New Zealand $2 (1989-92).
Two talks were given. Robin Hughes gave a talk on The British
Isles, Brent Arthurson gave a talk on Propaganda Notes.
Both of these talks were well received by all members. It is an
important part of being an IBNS member that at all of our
meetings we encourage members to share their knowledge
through talks and/or PowerPoint displays. This enables all
members to learn something new or expand on the knowledge
that they may already have.
Shanghai Chapter
Liu Min
Room 901
No. 12, Lane 64
Xin Hua Rd.
Shanghai
China
manager@[Link]
South African Chapter
Werner Barnard, Secretary
P.O. Box 36678
Menlo Park
Pretoria 0102
South Africa
[Link]@[Link]
[Link]
Southern California Chapter
Stewart Westdal, President
P.O. Box 221077
San Diego, CA 92192-1077
United States
swestdal@[Link]
May 2008 meeting: A report on the initial meeting of the
Southern California chapter of the International Bank Note
Society, held in conjunction with the Long Beach Expo on
Saturday, May 31st, 2008, and a tentative agenda for its second
meeting scheduled for Saturday, September 20th, 2008, again in
Long Beach.
Before our meeting started at 10 a.m., we distributed IBNS
information packets and membership applications to paper
money dealers to hand out to customers visiting their tables. Of
the 13 members of the chapter, eight were present, two were ill
and three were at their bourse tables. Stewart Westdal welcomed
the attending members and displayed the chapters certificate,
which was photographed more than a few times. He thanked the
members for the varied and good suggestions they had sent him,
and especially thanked Jim Noll for many great ideas as well as
the donation of a website to the chapter, which can be reached at
[Link] All are welcome to visit the site.
The attending members were introduced with each identifying
their major collecting areas or interests, followed by a presentation
by Jim Noll on ATM test notes. Passing around various examples
for close inspection, his well-received presentation included
technical information on the development and changing ATM
technology, and research on adapting machines to deal with
IBNS Journal 47.4

notes of new materials. There was quite a discussion after the

presentation and Jim was thanked for his informative and
interesting presentation.

than one chapter, although they must indicate their primary

affiliation. It was a pleasant and informative discussion with many
ideas being exchanged.

Stewart spoke of some of the activities of the Educational

Committee. Working with other chapters, individual members,
and other organizations to make themselves known to local
newspapers as well as radio and television stations. All in an
effort to help explain various news items such as hyperinflation in
varied countries (such as a bottle of beer in some country costing
$5,000,000 in the local currency for instance), physical changes in
banknotes over the years, famous people, artwork, animals, ships,
other topical on notes, and so on. It was noted that there is great
interest in formation of more chapters in the United States as well
as in other countries.

Several members asked if it might be possible to change our next

meeting dates from Saturday to Thurdays, the first day of the
Long Beach show. The main reason being, to be able to have a
first chance at notes being offered in the bourse. Discussion on
this issue was brief as all present supported the change of day with
meetings running from noon to 2:00 p.m. This request will be
forwarded to the Collectors Universe shortly.

A brief discussion was held on possible topics for the next

meeting, expected to be in the same location and time on
Saturday, September 20th, as well as ways to fund the chapter,
recruitment for the IBNS as well as the chapter, possible
presentations for future meetings (Stewart has one on notes of
the smallest European lands ready for September), The meeting
adjourned at 11:35 a.m., whereupon we headed for the bourse
area. While visiting IBNS members at their tables we were handed
two completed membership applications with payment, one being
for three members of a family, all interested in joining our chapter!
It was a good meeting and day; we met, talked and had fun!
July 2008 update: A brief outline of a probable agenda for
the second meeting of the Southern California chapter of the
International Banknote Society, to be held in conjunction with
the Long Beach Expo on Saturday, September 20th, 2008.
A short business meeting is planned at present to: introduce new
chapter members (we have 19 now!) and get to know each other a
bit more, discuss anything interesting that occurred since our last
meeting, have an auction of donated notes to help fund the chapter,
election of officers, the SCC website, and whatever else comes up.
Jim raised the prospect of having an auction of donated notes to
fund chapter activities by having auctions at our meetings and
selling leftovers to dealers. Tax deduction paperwork will be
given to donors. Please forward notes with grades and reference
numbers as soon as possible. Id like to have 30 or so in the first
sale (I have 13 now) to get an idea of the time needed.
I have a slide show of notes of the smallest European lands (20 or
so minutes) and a few 5-10 minute show and tell presentations
would be welcomed. If you have any other ideas, let me know.
Thanks for all your support, suggestions, ideas, news and patience.
Lets learn something and have fun!
September 2008 meeting: The second meeting of the Southern
California chapter of the IBNS was held in the Long Beach
Convention Center on Saturday, September 20th, 2008. Eight
members were present: Ken Aring, John Gray,John Martin, Jim
Noll, Brian Taylor(who serves as IBNS Regional Representative),
Mark Watson, Stewart Westdal, and Steve Willing. We had two
guests attending our meeting, Mike Bush and Scott McNatt who
represents the Los Angeles Paper Money Club and is instrumental
in the drive to form an IBNS chapter in Los Angeles. We
exchanged ideas for member recruitment, chapter structure,
member mobility between chapters, and the pros and cons of
having one large chapter in a particular area or several smaller
ones. It was noted that IBNS members may be members of more
IBNS Journal 47.4

Stewart Westdal presented a slide show on: Paper Money of

Europes Fourteen Smallest Note Issuers, ranging from Luxembourg
(1,103 sq. mi.), Saar (991 sq. mi.), Liechtenstein (625 sq. mi.),
etc., ending with Fiume (15 sq. mi.), Gibraltar 92.2 sq. mi.), and
Monaco with 0.85 sq. mi.
An auction containing nine lots of notes donated by Jim Noll
and Stewart Westdal followed as a fund raiser for the chapter with
seven bidders registering, with the notes selling for US$76.00.
Thank you for supporting our chapter.
The meeting adjourned at 11:20 a.m. With several members
remaining in the room to chat and the others headed for the bourse.
Sydney Chapter
Tony James, Secretary
G.P.O. Box 1398
Sydney, NSW 2001
Australia
info@[Link]
September 2008 meeting: Ten members attended the
Sydney chapters meeting in September; which resulted in an
excellent meeting despite the low attendance. After the usual
formalities, discussion turned to the forthcoming Australian
IBNS Convention in Perth. Numbers were finalized and people
indicated whether they were giving a talk or display.
Recent acquisitions were then displayed by Scott de Young, Peter
Symes, Graham Owen, David Meltz and Grahame Austin. The
topic of the evening was French Colonial Notes and several people
presented displays. David Meltz showed some of the high-value
notes he holds in an extensive collection; Jamie Alder displayed an
intriguing array of notes from many locales; and Graham Austin
presented items from his collection, predominantly of French
Indochina.
There was plenty of time to walk around and view the collections,
which ranged from poor examples of rare notes to brilliant crisp
examples of some incredible notes. There is no doubt that there is
something special about French-printed notes.
After thanks were given to those who presented displays, general
talk ensued before the meeting broke up; all members eager for
the next meeting.
October 2008 meeting: Thirteen members and a guest were
present at the Sydney chapters October meeting. Chairman Mark
Freehill, recently returned from his globe trotting, chaired the
gathering. The meeting commenced with final discussion on the
forthcoming IBNS Convention in Perth and discussion on the
chapters 400th meeting to be held in November.
71

Forthcoming auctions were discussed, with a couple of catalogues

passed around. After which short reports from the secretary and
treasurer were tabled. Recent acquisitions were then presented,
with many members showing how active they had been in the
last month (despite the economic downturn). Displaying recent
acquisitions has become increasingly popular at the meetings.
The topic for the evening was East Africa, and three members
prepared displays. Grahame Austin presented notes from various
east African nations; Peter Symes showed notes from the East
African Currency Board and some of the successor issues; and
Jamie Alder displayed notes from the region, including an issued
Zanzibar 1 rupee and a proof reverse that was never used. Nice!
In anticipation of the Perth Convention, just over a week away,
the meeting ended; with several members gathering at a restaurant
to resume unfinished discussions (mostly on banknotes).
Turkish Chapter
Cem Barlok, President
P. Kutusu 346
34115 Sirkeci
Istanbul
Turkey
cembarlok@[Link]
Vancouver Chapter
Ron Richardson, Secretary
P.O. Box 38704
Metro Postal Outlet
North Vancouver, BC V7M 3N1
Canada
[Link]@[Link]
[Link]
June 2008 meeting: The meeting began a little late, at 7:10
p.m., with 22 chapter members present, 16 of whom were IBNS
members. The chapter secretary announced that the Vancouver
group has been recertified for the year. There was a brief discussion
of the chapter joining the Canadian Numismatic Association so
it can hold a meeting at the 2009 CNA Convention to be held
in Edmonton, capital of the next-door province of Alberta. This
would provide an opportunity to meet at least a few of the IBNS
members who live in the province. The meeting was also told of
the invitation from the Perth chapter to attend the Australian
IBNS Convention later this year.
As usual, members presented brief reports on recent local coin
shows, and discussed a few upcoming shows. Ed Goldberg offered
his now regular report on the latest developments in his former
home country of Zimbabwe. He noted that in June the average
salary in Zimbabwe was around Z$3.2 billion, and that a new
top-denomination note of Z$50 billion had been issued, although it
lost much of its value almost immediately. He was very pessimistic
over the economic and political outlook for the country.
The program for the evening was entitled Catalogues Get the
Book Before the Banknote, was presented by Ron Richardson.
Members brought along a selection of their favourite catalogues
and paper money books as part of the evenings program. The
talk discussed the three main functions of catalogues, which were
said to be, in descending order of importance: for identification
of notes, to provide a basis of communication within the hobby
by way of numbering systems, and least importantly, as a guide
to values. This last point led to some discussion of the erratic
72

variations in prices in the SCWPM. The books were recognized

for the great contribution they had made to the development of
a knowledge base for the hobby, but were largely discounted as a
guide to market prices.
The date for the next meeting was set for September 22nd at the
usual venue at Burnaby Public Library, about 30 minutes from
Downtown Vancouver.
September 2008 meeting: The meeting, the 30th since the
founding of the chapter, was a little less successful than had been
expected. There was good attendance, 24 in total, including two
who were attending for the first time. However, technology let
us down when the PowerPoint projector needed for the nights
program would not communicate with the laptop computer
containing the program; however, more on that later.
The evening began as usual with reports on recent shows attended
by members, including a report of the American Numismatic
Association Convention held in Baltimore at the end of July.
Mention was also made of an upcoming show in Vancouver,
of the Maastricht September show (which one or two chapter
members will be attending), and the IBNS London Congress.
It was also announced that the Vancouver chapter has become
a member of the Canadian Numismatic Association (and a
hat was passed around to cover the costs as the chapter has no
membership fees or income). Membership in the CNA will enable
the chapter to hold a meeting in conjunction with the 2009 CNA
Convention, which will be held in August in Edmonton, within
driving distance of Vancouver.
It was decided to find an alternate venue for the November/
December meeting so the chapter can hold a small Christmas
party, our normal meeting place in a public library does not allow
food or beverages into the meeting room. A tentative date of
November 25th was set for the meeting.
Several members brought notes to show. Milt Blackburn
mounted a display of Zimbabwe banknotes covering the period
of hyperinflation from 2006 to the present, 38 notes in all. Steve
Cox circulated an album with a wonderful collection of Mexican
bancos, tying in with the evenings planned program. Clint
OToole brought four specimen notes he had just acquired from
the first Papua New Guinea series.
Dan Bellan valiantly moved ahead with the evenings program,
Banking and Banknotes in Mexico. In the absence of the
PowerPoint projector, 23 people crowded around the screen of
Dans laptop as he tried to illustrate his talk. He ranged from
the very beginnings of currency in Mexico, through the years of
the 1800s as administrations struggled to have paper currency
accepted, through the great American Bank Note Company series
from 1936 to 1970, and on to the locally produced notes of
today. Dan spent a great deal of time explaining the symbols used
on the notes, with photographs of the paintings and artifacts on
which engravings were based. Dan, who is a stonemason by trade,
was especially detailed in his explanation of engravings, such as
the Aztec calendar from the 1 peso series, which are based on
stone artifacts.
The meeting closed around 9:00 p.m., after which quite a few members
gathered in a nearby coffee shop, as usual, to continue discussions.

IBNS Journal 47.4

IBNS Announcements
IBNS Journal Wins Award

The IBNS Journal was awarded second place in the American

Numismatic Associations Outstanding Club Publications Contest
for 2008, in the category of Specialty Clubs. The winners in the
section for Specialty Clubs were:
First Place: Casino Chip and Token News, Casino Chip and
Gaming Token Collectors Club (Editor: Allan Anderson)
Second Place: International Bank Note Society Journal,
International Bank Note Society (Editor: Owen W. Linzmayer)
Third Place (tie): Currys Chronicle, Carson City Coin Collectors
of America (Editor: Rusty Goe); and Paper Money, Society of
Paper Money Collectors (Editor: Fred L. Reed III)

IBNS Membership Fees Adjustment

The base fees for IBNS membership remain unchanged, but

following the volatility in exchange rates over the last couple
of months, the exchange rates for GBP and AUD have been
adjusted. The following rates will now be used:

USD
GBP
AUD
Individual 33.00
20.00
44.00
Group
33.00
20.00
44.00
Junior
16.50
10.00
22.00
Family
41.00
25.00
54.50
Life
990.00 600.00 1320.00
Noting the unstable state of the worlds economies, further
adjustments may be necessary, but we hope to maintain these
rates for as long as possible.

IBNS Address Labels

Have you noticed the address label that is printed on IBNS

publications delivered to members? The first line of the label takes
the following format:
8765 Thomas Nesmith 032009
This line contains three elements:
8765 is the IBNS member number
Thomas Nesmith is the members name
032009 is the date to which the member has paid their IBNS
membership fees; where 03 is the month and 2009 is the year.
The third element, the date, is included on the address label to
remind members when their subscription will fall due. (Life
members will not have the third element on their address labels.)

IBNS Book of the Year

Have you come across a good book on paper money that was
published in 2008? If so, perhaps you should nominate it for the
IBNS Book of the Year Award. If you wish to nominate a book,
revisit page 58 of the IBNS Journal Vol.47, No.3 or contact Milt
Blackburn or Ron Richardson of the Awards Committee (contact
details on page 4 of this Journal).

IBNS Web Site

Further to the announcement in the last IBNS Journal, work is

progressing, albeit slowly, on selecting a way forward with the
IBNS web site. Numerous expressions of interest in building the
web site have been received and there are a range of options before
the committee investigating the redevelopment.
While some options presented to the committee were well
beyond our financial expectations, we have numerous options well
within our financial constraints. Although it seems unlikely that
we will have the new web site as early as we would have liked, it is
hoped it will not be too long before the new site is available.
The temporary web site remains a target for visitors and we are
receiving regular inquiries concerning membership. As always,
suggestions for improving the content of this site, and the future
site, can be sent to webmaster@[Link].

Perth Chapters Calendar

The Perth Chapter of the IBNS has recently produced a beautiful

2009 calendar in an effort to offset the costs of running the IBNS
Convention, recently held in Perth. Produced on quality paper
and spiral bound, each month has a banknote depicted; with
each image being donated by a member of the Perth Chapter. All
images are oversize to meet legislation in Australia and overseas.
The calendar is available for sale to IBNS members for
USD20.00, delivered anywhere in the world. Australian members
can purchase the calendar for AUD25.00, including postage.
The Perth Chapter hopes that, should the calendars prove
popular, they may produce calendars in future years. For the
moment, orders can be placed with Chapter President Brent
Arthurson at:
P.O. Box 214
Como, WA 6952
Australia
or
brenta1@[Link]

IBNS Auction No.64

The IBNS Postal Bid Auction No.64 is now underway and will
conclude on 31 January 2009. All members should now have
their auction catalogue but, if it was not delivered or you have
misplaced it, the catalogue is available from the IBNS Web Site
([Link]). Please remember that bids for this auction
can be sent to bids@[Link] up to midnight on the closing day.

IBNS Bank Note of the Year

If you find yourself with a few idle moments, please consider

nominating a banknote for the Bank Note of the Year award.
Nominations will be accepted up to 31 January 2009. Send
nominations to the Webmaster or the Journal Editor (contact
details on page 2).

IBNS Journal 47.4

The front of the calendar produced by the Perth Chapter, showing a

collage of the twelve notes appearing for each month.

73

A Message from Steve Milner

on Education
I was elected a Director at Large at the Memphis meeting in June.
I started collecting banknotes in 1976 when working in Rhodesia;
my appetite having been whetted by Tony Baxter, an avid coin
collector. Being single with some disposable income, I was able
to buy my first notes; a Rhodesia & Nyasaland 1 and a 1936
Barclays BDO 10 shillings. However, this wasnt my first time at
admiring the beauty of banknotes; I still remember looking at my
first 10 shilling note whilst growing up in England thinking what
a lot of money this is!!
This brings me to the next part of my story. In mid-July I was
in London talking to Simon Narbeth in his shop in Cecil Square,
when in walks a young lad with his mother. He said that he had
bought a white fiver recently and wanted to look at some of the
inexpensive notes. The lad bought 10 notes and was obviously
very pleased with his new acquisitions. His younger brother then
wanted to buy some and proceeded to select his 10 worth. This
started me thinking that this is the future of our hobby, and I
asked Simon what he thought the average age of IBNS members
was; he responded that it was a lot less than philatelists. My
next thought was how can the IBNS win the hearts and minds
of more young people and get them interested in our hobby? I
immediately thought of education, education, education to
use a similar real estate clich. The education clich is one that
affects my work as a Geologist involved with land access issues on
Aboriginal land in Australia; the elders regard the future of their
children as coming from education, education, education and
ask the mining companies to assist, but thats a story for another
time and place.
Don Cleveland, the IBNS Education Committee Chairperson,
is now charged with an exciting role at a time when banknote
collecting is surging and interest is increasing at a fast rate. If you
have any ideas to help Don I urge you to contact him.
In recent years I have tried to get a Rhodesia-Zimbabwe
interest group together with some success. I correspond with
many IBNS members in Australia, USA, New Zealand, South
Africa, Zimbabwe, and UK that collect these notes. This is
another way to broaden our horizons and eventually I hope to see
such groups linked via the IBNS website.
Another way to increase our education is through the IBNS
Chapters. I am part of a very dynamic and vibrant chapter in
Perth, Western Australia, hosts to the Australian Convention
on 1 and 2 November. These get-togethers at Chapter and
countrywide level are invaluable in developing contacts and
broadening our knowledge of banknotes and paper money in
general. Interaction between chapters is also another way of
developing the IBNS.
As a Director at Large, I feel that all Directors are charged with
expanding our society and I urge all members to contact myself
with ideas about thematic interest groups, education or generally
how we can develop society for the benefit of all members. I look
forward to hearing from you. Steve and Dons contact details can be
found in the list of Society Officers and Directors at the front of the
JournalEditor.

IBNS Educational Programs

Worlds Fair of Money
Baltimore, Maryland, July 30-August 3, 2008
Baltimore Convention Center
1 West Pratt Street, Baltimore, MD 21201
The International Bank Note Society Education Program
Moderator, Howard A. Daniel III, manned a club table for IBNS
(and NI, NBS & PCF) at the American Numismatic Association
Worlds Fair of Money in Baltimore. The table looked impressive
with the table cover created by Brian Giese, with a large IBNS
logo and the society name on it. Several people attending the
show stopped and signed up to join IBNS.
Over 400 packets with a world banknote from IBNS (and
coins from NI) were given to young and new numismatists in the
name of IBNS at the club table. Many Pick and Krause references
were also given to a few serious new collectors and to several
scout counsellors to assist with those scouts working on their
numismatic merit badge.
There was an International Bank Note Society meeting at
11AM in Room 318 on 2 August. Eighteen of the attendees were
IBNS members and there were more non-members who did not
sign in. Joseph E. Boling gave a talk on detecting the United
States OSS and British SOE counterfeits of WWII Japanese
Invasion Money (JIM). During the last quarter of the meeting,
there was a Mini-Fest conducted by William Myers, where
collectors of MPC and other military monies conducted a pay call
with specially printed notes paid to them.
There was also an NI meeting moderated by Howard at noon
in the same room. Only three members attended, but there was
a lively discussion of the show; what pieces we had acquired; and
the people we had met. About ten NI members showed up at the
club table during the show and were given a pinback to wear and
one of the elongated NI coins.
Howard also attended part of the PCF (Philippine Collectors
Forum) meeting at this show on Friday, which went for four
hours. There were about 40 signed-in attendees and others
coming in for a single talk and then leaving. Please contact Ray
Czahor at CookieJarPI@[Link] for further information about
this and future PCF meetings.
During the convention, Howard was awarded one of five
Glenn Smedley medals. The citation for the award described his
volunteer work at ANA conventions and manning the club table
for the IBNS and other organizations. All his volunteer work was
started by Bill Spengler. Bill moderated the NI meetings for many
years and needed a replacement. Howard finally accepted after a
couple of years, and added the IBNS and two other organizations
to his work at ANA shows and conventions.
Please contact Howard at HADaniel3@[Link] if you have any
questions about the ANA shows or conventions; IBNS meetings at
them; or donations of coins, paper money and/or references.

Howard A. Daniel III at right, receiving the Glenn Smedley Award at the 2008
American Numismatic Association convention in Baltimore, Maryland. ANA Vice
President, Patty Finner is in the center and President Barry Stuppler on the left.

74

IBNS Journal 47.4

New Members

he following people have

recently joined the IBNS
and are welcomed to
the Society. We hope they find
membership rewarding and that
they will find the opportunity
to contribute to the Society.
al-Bekheit, Abdullah 10045
P.O. Box 9408
Ras Alsalmia
22095
Kuwait
mronerupeeanna@[Link]
COLL: Coins, Kuwait
Allen, Doug 9933
7900 [Link]
Burr Ridge, IL 60527, USA
Belton, Peter 10053
Sweet Meadow House
4 South View
Uppingham
Rutland
LE15 9TU
United Kingdom
Black, Douglas 9945
Boileau, George 9939
Chan, En Cheng 10201
markchanec@[Link]
COLL: Straits Settlements,
Malaya & British Borneo,
Sarawak, Singapore, Malaya
Chiu, Kai 10050
Clark, George 9923
216 Sycamore Ridge Drive
Bermuda Run, NC
27006-7477, USA
gtc82@[Link]
COLL: Polymer Notes, and all
paper banknotes
Delic, Mirsad 10056
39, Agiasmatos Street
Flat 12
Nicosia
2361
Cyprus
mpdelic@[Link]
COLL: World notes
Dennis, Geoffrey 10049
15 Ismay Road
Chaddesden
Derby
Derbyshire DE21 6LU
United Kingdom

IBNS Journal 47.4

Di Lauro, Louis 9936

1050 Second Ave #28
New York, NY 10022, USA
numisnetldl@[Link]
COLL: China, Southeast Asia,
Introduced by Howard Daniel
Dwyer, James 9922
firme64impala@[Link]
COLL: Mexico
Ferguson, Thomas 9925
tafconsulting@[Link]
COLL: World notes, and
recent series
Foley, Kevin 9931
[Link] 370650
Milwaukee, WI 53237, USA
Kfoley@[Link]
[Link]
COLL: United States,
Introduced by Tim Welo
Fradkin, Danny 10054
Weizmann 10/4
Rishon Lezion
Israel
gonabe8@[Link]
COLL: Ghetto/Holocaust,
Arabic notes, World notes,
German inflation notes
Frampton, Cory 9926
P.O Box 5270
Carefree, AZ 85377, USA
cory@[Link]
[Link]
COLL: Mexico
Gillio, Ronald 9929
8 W. Figueroa Street
Santa Barbara, CA 93101, USA
rjgillio@[Link]
[Link]
COLL: World notes, US Coins
and World Coins Introduced
by Tim Welo
Green, Vincent 10057
21 Chalfont Close
Appleton
Warrington
Cheshire WA4 5JT
United Kingdom
way2stampy@[Link]
COLL: Scotland, England;
Introduced by David Muscott
Hall, Rodney 10047
kiwi_koins@[Link]
COLL: China, Russia,
Philippines, New Zealand,
England, Western Samoa

Hazelwood, Ronald 9947

49 Fairfield Ave
Danville, VA 24542-4813
USA
COLL: World notes

Parr, Dean 9942

2761 Bever Ave SE
Cedar Rapids, IA 52403, USA
drparr@[Link]
COLL: World notes, World Coins

Heygate, Christopher 10048

Bay View
Dartmouth Road
Stoke Fleming
Dartmouth
Devon TQ6 0QY
United Kingdom
[Link]@[Link]
COLL: Queen Elizabeth notes

Patil, Popat 9927

219 Sinsbury Drive
Worthington, OH 43085, USA
COLL: Medicine on notes,
Scientists and educational
Currency

Iafrate, Leo 10046

via Campopiano, 30
Sofra (FR)
03039
Italy
leo1083@[Link]
Jiang, Yiling 10052
103 Hatherly Court
Hatherly Grove
London W2 5RF
United Kingdom
ceeeeejay@[Link]
COLL: French Colonies, China
Lomonaco, Braz 9944
Rua Bocaiuva 2173
APTO 401B
Florianopolis
88105-530
Brazil
bflomonaco@[Link]
COLL: World notes, by
Signature and by Dates
Mantia, Giovanni 9935-J
Mantia, Richard 9934
Moore, Michael 9937
21139 Twinridge Square
Sterling, VA 20164, USA
mmlvmoore@[Link]
Ni, Kan 10202
PO Box 442-010
Shanghai
200442
China
cibecollection2007@[Link]
COLL: France, China
Niemiec, Grzegorz 10044
[Link]@
[Link]
COLL: Flowers on notes, Animal
notes, Hermes/Mercury or its
attributes, Male body motifs

Radel, Jon 9941

Jon@[Link]
COLL: World notes, some
focus on Thailand and Africa
Ramos, Jose 9932
1550 E. 215th Place
Carson, CA 90745, USA
COLL: World notes, Introduced
by southern California Chapter
Rombaut, Stefan 10043
[Link]@[Link]
COLL: World War II,
Replacement notes, World notes
Schumacher, Forrest 9928
2300 Avalon Drive
Waukesha, WI 53186, USA
COLL: British Commonwealth
Shelton, Orville Dean 9924
180 Center Road
Litchfield, ME 04350, USA
bkbcards@[Link]
Shen, Yuan 10203
Room 902, No. 11, Hai-Yue
Garden
Lu Ban Road
Lu Wan District
Shanghai
200023
China
coin_2001@[Link]
COLL: Coins, Southeast Asia,
Asia
Shilkin, Andrey 10051
andboreas@[Link]
COLL: World notes, Russia
Sidorowicz, Jan 9940
4965 Bonny # 5
Montreal-pierrefonds
QC H8Y 2A4
Canada
jeansidor@[Link]
COLL: Europe, British and
French colonies

75

New Members
continued from page 75
Spano, Rodrigo 9946
rmspano@[Link]
COLL: Numismatic Literature,
World notes, Brazil, Brazilian
and Worldwide coins
Treglia, Peter 9930
P.O Box 18523
Irvine, CA 92653, USA
PeterT@[Link]
[Link]
COLL: United States, Canada,
Italy, Large and Small, National
bank notes Introduced by Tim
Welo

Trotta, Paul 9938

170 Chapel Hill Rd
DeQueen, AR 71832, USA
paultrotta@[Link]
COLL: World War I, World War
II, Also between the world wars
Tung, Le Truong 10204
FPT University
15B Pham Hung, My Dinh
Tu Liem
Hanoi
Viet Nam
tunglt@[Link]
COLL: Inflation notes, Russia,
Vietnam

White, Gary 9943

glrwhite@[Link]
Xia, Peifeng 10206
Room 10 #214
West Campus of USTC
Hefei Anhui
230027
China
kobby@[Link]
COLL: Animal notes, Polymer
Notes, Commemoratives, Music
on notes, Science on notes

Zhou, Jie 10205

General Office
Hangzhou Xiaoshan
International Airport Co Ltd
Hangzhou Zhejiang
311207
China
poorvera@[Link]
COLL: World notes
Nota bene: Under Article II, Section
3 of the Bylaws of the IBNS, existing
members may object to any new
member by writing to the General
Secretary, informing him of objections
as to why the new member should
not be admitted to the IBNS.

Board Meeting Minutes

Minutes of the IBNS Board Meeting,
London, Friday 3 October, 2008
Christof Zellweger, First Vice President, called the meeting to order at
6:00pm. Directors in attendance were Jonathan Callaway, Frank Spinelli,
Thomas Augustsson, and Paul Walters. Chapter Chair, and member of
the Board, in attendance was Pam West. Members of the Board giving
prior notice of non-attendance were: Peter Symes, Ron Richardson, Hans
Seems, David White, Ali Mehilba, Joel Shafer, Joe Boling, Bryan Taylor,
Simon Biddlestone, Evzen Sknouril.
The meeting followed the agenda prepared by President Peter Symes and
forwarded to Christof Zellweger, First Vice President serving as chairman
for the London board meeting.
1. Consideration of the Memphis 2008 IBNS Board meeting minutes:
Motion made by Jonathan Callaway, seconded by Thomas Augustsson
to approve Memphis board meeting minutes. Motion passed
unanimously.
2. Chairman mentions that the outstanding claim by Evzen Sknouril has
lapsed due to Evzen failing to provide documentation to his claim for
expenses. Board takes no action on matter.
3. Committee Reports: Committee Reports submitted via e-mail
accepted as received. Board unanimously approved these reports from
the respective committees.
The London Board at this point in the meeting offered its gratitude to
Tim Welo, our advertizing manager for a job well done.
The Grievance & Discipline Committee is presently working with
candidates to fill vacant positions as assistants. No action taken by
London Board. The Chairman of the Grievance and Disciplinary
Committee is asked to present possible candidates by the Perth Board
meeting.
Acceptance of Resignation/Appointment of secretarial positions.
It was noted that Jonathan Lalass resignation as assistant secretary was
received. David White, acting general secretary, has been appointed
Australian Secretary.
Noted to board that David Kenney has been appointed Chapters Secretary.
Also noted that Clive Rice resigned his role of European Secretary, following

76

the decision at Memphis to relieve him of his role of General Secretary, and
serves only as Assistant Treasurer. Until the position of European Secretary
can be filled, Peter Symes will continue to act in that role.
David Whites resignation as Director Region 6 accepted (as he is now
a member of the Board due to his position as Australian Secretary) and
the appointment of Ian Yarde to the position of Director Region 6 is
proposed.
A motion was made by Thomas Augustsson and seconded by Jonathan
Callaway that the resignations and appointments be accepted. Board
approved unanimously.
4. A separate motion was made that the board dissolve the position
of European Librarian. (More concerning the library later in the
meeting.) Motion made by Frank Spinelli and seconded by Jonathan
Callaway. Passed unanimously.
5. Bylaws Update: A report was given by Paul Walters who is charged
with clarifying terminology/language in the existing Bylaws. Only two
people have responded with input to help with this matter. Walters
requests that anyone who wishes to give input to please do so soon.
Walters reports that the bylaws will not be changed significantly,
but will be updated to reflect recent changes in the status of several
positions, etc. He will have the bylaws report ready for the Maastricht
meeting pending any unforeseen circumstances.
6. At this time, a motion was made to make an adjustment for the
expulsion and re-instatement procedures as prepared by Ron
Richardson and distributed to all board members by e-mail during the
week before the board meeting . Motion was made by Frank Spinelli
and seconded by Thomas Augustsson. Passed unanimously.
7. A motion was made for adjustment in the rates of exchange for GB
to reflect the changes in the current monetary trends so that the IBNS
would not lose funds from the decline in currency rates. Individual:
18.50 / Family: 23.00 / Junior: 9.25 / Life: 555.00. The
IBNSs internal (accounting) rate of exchange for the two currencies
is changed to one pound = $1.78. Jonathan Callaway proposed we
accept the change with Christof Zellweger seconding. Board approves
unanimously.
8. Website: Peter Symes reports via e-mail that the new website should be
in operation at the beginning of 2009. Currently under construction.

IBNS Journal 47.4

Board Meeting Minutes

continued from page 76
9. Other Business: Concerning the E-bay Giving Works Project. It was
decided that we will advertise for a volunteer to help with this project.
If no volunteer is found, the board feels that we should allow the
project to lapse. It was suggested that in the IBNS Journal we have
a Brick Wall of Donors who for one issue could make a donation
of support for the IBNS. $10.00 was the suggested donation. Each
issue would require a separate donation for recognition. It was also
suggested that we have a page or prominent ad in the journal for
donations. A motion was made by Pam West with a second by Frank
Spinelli. Motion passed on the above.
Pam West left the meeting.
10. European Library: It was moved that we accept the offer from Rob
Huisman of $1100.00 for the books now in the IBNS possession in
Brno, Czech Republic. It is noted that not all of the items mentioned
in the inventory and offered for sale were included. The board
recommends that if the other items are recovered, that the executive
committeePresident, First and Second Vice President have discretion
to negotiate a price for the recovered items. Motion to approve
both proposals made by Thomas Augustsson, Seconded by Jonathan
Callaway; and passed unanimously.
On a separate motion, it was decided that the executive committee can
continue to negotiate for the return of the missing items or discontinue
any recovery efforts if they feel that positive results would not occur.
Motion made by Paul Walters, Seconded by Christof Zellweger, and
passed unanimously.
11. Adjournment: The next meeting will take place in Perth, Australia on
November 2, 2008. The London meeting was adjourned at 6.50pm.
Minutes taken by Paul Walters.

Minutes of the IBNS Board Meeting,

Perth, Australia, Sunday 2
November, 2008
In attendance were: President Peter Symes; Directors Don Cleveland,
Steve Milner and Ian Yarde; Acting General Secretary and Australian
Secretary David White; Chapter Chairman Brent Arthurson (Perth);
and Members Alan Flint, Steve Dowsett, Alex Brond and Tony James.
Opening
The meeting opened at 0800.
A welcome to the first Australian Board meeting was made by the
chairman. It was then noted that, as the room being used would have
members of the convention milling around before too long, matters
concerning the Report by the Grievance and Discipline (G&D)
Committee would be dealt with first. Members vacated the room leaving
only the board members.
Grievance and Discipline Committee
The report by the Chair of the G&D Committee noted seven complaints
resolved since he took over the committee, three members vetted for
life membership, two administrative matters were reported and one
complaint remains outstanding.

London Minutes
It was noted that the Minutes of the London Meeting omitted the
acceptance of David Whites Resignation as Director for Region 6 and the
appointment of Ian Yarde to the same position. David White had been
in contact with Christof Zellweger and been advised that the motion
had been passed. [The minutes of the London Board meeting have been
adjusted to reflect this omission.]
Motions
On the recommendation of the Chair of the G&D Committee, Tony
Alsop, it was proposed to appoint Stanley Serxner (0024) and Qiuss
Agnel Rajkumar (9757) as assistants to the committee. Proposed by Brent
Arthurson, seconded by Don Cleveland, and passed unanimously.
At the London Board Meeting it was decided that there should be no
further opportunity for Evzen Sknouril to present claims for expenses
for the European Library. Christof Zellweger had suggested that, should
Evzen Sknouril provide proper documentation then the President and
Treasurer are free to agree with Evzen for how much he should be
reimbursed for documented expenses as librarian. After some discussion
on the background and current situation the motion was proposed by
Don Cleveland and seconded by Brent Arthurson. The motion was
defeated by three votes (Milner/White/Arthurson) to two (Cleveland/
Yarde).
The matter of volatile exchange rates was discussed, in relation to charges
for membership dues. It was noted that since the London Board meeting,
only a month previously, the GBP to USD rate had changed significantly
and the rate for the AUD to USD was no longer aligned. Treasurer Joe
Boling had noted, in correspondence with the President, he was opposed
to chasing rates, because it confuses the members, obsoletes existing
recruitment materials, and causes additional bookkeeping work for me
as treasurer. In addition, eventually the rates turn around, and we usually
dont change them until they have sat steady for several months. The
current volatility means that, depending on exchange rates, members
of the Society or the Society itself could be disadvantaged by adverse
exchange rates. Rather than leave the setting of rates to the IBNS Board
Meetings, a motion was proposed by David White that The Treasurer
and President can set rates for currencies to reflect the membership dues
in USD. (Nota bene: This motion does not affect the setting of the USD
fees for membership, simply the conversion rates to GBP and AUD.) The
motion was seconded by Steve Milner and passed unanimously.
Update on the IBNS European Library
The President advised that, following the retrieval of most books from
the Museum of Fine Arts in Prague some weeks ago, further material
had been retrieved. The IBNS was now in possession of all but roughly
twenty books and a set of video tapes. All material now in possession of
the IBNS is to be passed to the purchaser. Material not owned by the
IBNS is to be returned either to its owner or to the Museum of Fine Arts.
Update on the IBNS Web Site
The President reported that progress had slowed over recent months but
a number of expressions of interest had been received, to rebuild the
IBNS web site. The range in prices was significant, although many of the
prices were well within an acceptable range. As well as considering these
expressions of interest, the committee investigating the new web site was
also considering the possibility of using volunteers of the IBNS to build
the web site. A decision is expected soon.

It was noted by the Board that there had been three complaints against
one member and while these matters had been resolved, there remained
concern at the recalcitrant behaviour of this member. After a discussion
it was resolved that the current arrangement, whereby the Chair of the
G&D committee could recommend immediate action to the President
should cover future eventualities and no further policy was required.

Next meeting
The next IBNS Board meeting is to be held at the 2009 Paper Money
Show at Valkenburg in the Netherlands, at a time and location to be
determined.

Members of the IBNS returned to the meeting.

Minutes taken by Peter Symes.

IBNS Journal 47.4

The meeting closed at 0905.

77

World Banknotes

Bought and SoldAny Quantity

Largest Stock of Banknotes
in the World
Over 50,000,000 pieces available
Send for Free Wholesale List
Educational Coin Company
P.O. Box 892
Highland, NY 12528-0892
United States
Phone (845) 691-6100 FAX (845) 691-4974
order@[Link]
[Link]

78

IBNS Journal 47.4

World Paper Money

Large selection of uncirculated banknotes at collector-friendly prices.
Free Online Inventory Lists Updated Daily
Want Lists Serviced
Safe Online Transactions With Secure Information
Monthly Newsletter With New Additions
Pages Coins and Currency
210 Bardwell Street
Belchertown, MA 01107 USA
413-303-0657
[Link]
admin@[Link]

Buying

Selling

Trading

Please Contact
Tim Welo
to purchase an ad in
the IBNS Journal.

We buy Banknotes, Postal History, Antiques, Stamps, Coins of China,

Tibet, Korea, Japan, Russia, Thailand, Nepal, India, Straits Settlements,
Malaya, Sarawak.

(see page 4 for contact information)

We sell postal history covers, bonds, shares, stamps proofs, specimen

bank notes, rare security printing specimen, stamps packet material,
new banknotes of Asia, coins gold, silver & alloy, etc.

World Banknotes
Buying & Selling

If you have any thing to offer then do let us know for best price.
We buy world specimen banknotes, all printing specimen of Security
printing, like proof of stamps, traveler cheques, certificates, airline tickets,
passport, shares etc.

ANIL KUMAR JAIN

[Link] NO: 96451

KOWLOON, HONGKONG.
E-MAIL: zarasa9999@[Link]
FAX: +852-27225152
SKYPE I/D: zarasa9999
YAHOO MSN: zarasa9999
IBNS LM 55
ANA LM 4381
HKG NUMISMATIC SOCIETY: LM 92

IBNS Journal 47.4

79

Colin Narbeth & Son Ltd.

BUYING & SELLING

OLD PAPER MONEY
20 Cecil Court, London WC2N 4HE
Tel: 0207 379 6975 Fax: 01727 811244
[Link]@[Link]

For large stocklist, visit our web site:

[Link]

Staples Numismatics, Inc

P.O. Box 752

San Anselmo, CA 94979-0752
United States
Telephone/Fax: (415) 897-1654
melsteinberg@[Link]

Our price lists contain extensive

listings of better world notes.

World Banknotes
P.O. Box 541255
Lake Worth, FL 33454-1255
USA
Telephone: (561) 383-6631
Fax: (561) 383-6621
info@[Link]
eBay Auctions: staplescoin

Free on request.
Free price list upon request
80

IBNS Journal 47.4

The Webs foremost resource for

Paper Money & Currency of the World

Related Books & Ephemera
Ask Yasha online!
Direct access to one of the worlds leading authorities
Free valuations, expert advice

IAN GRADON
WORLD NOTES
Banknotes bought and sold.
Bulk lots, collections
& single items wanted.
Tel: 0191 3719 700
ian@[Link]
[Link]

Shop on the Webs most comprehensive online store

All enquiries welcome: yasha@[Link]
or call 00 44 20 8349 2207

Up-to-date lists available on request.

please visit us at

~ All stocks banked ~

[Link]

IBNS member 7516

International Bond & Share Society

encouraging Scripophily since 1978

WORLD BANKNOTES

Directory: Annual membership and dealer directory, with full

listings for the USA, UK, Germany, and 40 other countries.
Scripophily: A twice-yearly magazine with 40+ illustrated pages
of US, European, and world news, research, auctions,
and a diary of coming events.
Meetings: Antwerp, Belgium; and Virginia, USA.

AUST R A LI A
BR I T ISH COL ONI A L
MILITA RY

Web site: Under construction, with members-only section.

USA

Max Hensley

520 Madison Street
San Antonio, TX 78204-1414

(+1) (650) 773-4125

president@[Link]


[Link]

REST OF THE WORLD

Philip Atkinson
167 Barnett Wood Lane
Ashtead
Surrey KT21 2LP
United Kingdom
(+44) (0) 1372 276787
secretary@[Link]

PR ICE L IS TS BY POS T OR E M A IL
JOHN PETTIT R A R E BA NK NOTES
T E L : ( + 6 1 2 ) 9 2 3 5 0 8 8 8
F A X : ( + 6 1 2 ) 9 2 3 5 0 5 8 8
E M A I L : i n f o @ j o h n p e t t i t . c o m
W E B S I T E : w w w. j o h n p e t t i t . c o m
P O S T A L : G P O
B O X
4 5 9 3
SYDNEY NSW 2001 AUSTR ALIA

IBNS Journal 47.4

81
IBSN_Ad 1

12/9/07 [Link] AM

NOVA ONLINE, Inc.

World and U.S.

World banknotes past and present

Actively Buying Collections

On-Line Retail and
WholeSale Listings
(sorry, no printed versions)
[Link]

For a vast online selection of World banknotes

[Link]

info@[Link]

kate@[Link]

P.O. Box 231028

Tigard, OR 97281-1028
United States

Life Member of the IBNS

Kate Gibson, PO Box 819, Camberley GU16 6ZU
United Kingdom
Tel: 00 44 (0)1252 548026

WORLD BANKNOTES
Military Payment Certificates
Allied Military Currency

P.O. Box 73037

Puyallup, WA 98373-0037
United States

Think of our
generous offer
when you sell.
Essie Kashani
P.O. Box 222
Chino Hills, CA 91709-0008
United States
(909) 627-2776
(909) 627-3996 fax
quetzalcurrency@[Link]
[Link]

82

ANA

SPMC

ANA LM1998

WILLIAM G. HENDERSON

Please send SASE

for our free lists.

IBNS

IBNS LM17

World banknotes for the collector.

Large selection of all countries.
Many new issues.
Sample list $1 (overseas $2)
Phone: ++1-253-848-9194
Fax: ++1-253-770-0880

LANSA
IBNS Journal 47.4

Buying and Selling

World Paper Money

Free Discount Sales Lists
Periodic Auctions
Fast Service

World Wide Notaphilic Service

P.O. Box 5427 - I
Vallejo, CA 94591 U.S.A.

Gentleman Collector Seeking:

1) Haiti Pick 34

= 5 Gourdes

2) Haiti Pick 1
3) Haiti Pick 75s
4) Haiti Pick 129
5) Haiti Pick 230 A

= 1 Gourde
= 1 Gourde (Spec.)
= 5 Gourdes
= 1 Gourde (Tyvek)

(Pick valuation is far too low)

Otmar Diehl, Postf. 100831,

50448 Cologne, Germany

Phone: (707) 644-3146

fax: (707) 643-3806

Michael Morris
Quality World Currency
Visa / MasterCard / PayPal welcome
Free Price Lists (print and online)

[Link]
P.O. Box 20046
Minneapolis, MN 55420-0046
Email: michael@[Link]
Tel: (952) 881-9403 Fax: (952) 888-4874

ISRAEL
PALESTINE
JUDAICA
We are the undisputed world leader in all aspects of
Israel, Palestine, Judaica, and Holocaust numismatics.
We also buy and sell almost all world
coins, tokens, medals, primitive money, and banknotes,
whether it be individual pieces or entire collections.
We issue price lists, conduct auctions, and work diligently on want lists.

WHITES

Buying and selling banknotes from around the world.

Catalogue every 6-8 weeks. For a free copy, please contact:

Jane White
P.O. Box 5936
Basildon, SS13 1WZ
United Kingdom
++44(0)1268-550755
janewhite21@[Link]
[Link]

B. FRANK & SON

Three AUCTIONS each year in Spring, Summer & Winter

150 lots of bank notes & paper ephemera
Plus coins, tokens, numismatic books & accessories
3 South Ave., Ryton
NE40 3LD, England
Tel: 0191 413 8749

Fax: 0191 413 2957

email: bfrankandson@[Link]
Website: [Link]

We are proud members of the ANA, IAPN, and IBNS.

Contact us today and let us know how we can help you.
WILLIAM M. ROSENBLUM LLC
P.O. Box 785
Littleton, CO 80160-0785

World Paper Money

from Afghanistan to Zimbabwe

Phone (720) 981-0785

Mobile (303) 910-8245
Fax (720) 981-5345
bill@[Link]
[Link]
IBNS Journal 47.4

W. Ribi, CH-8309 Hakab, Switzerland

worldpapermoney@[Link]
83

Ad Index
79 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ATS Notes
83 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . B. Frank & Son
79 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . BLS Trading Partners
7. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Bowers & Merena
78 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Coincraft
80 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Colin Narbeth & Son LTD
83 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Diehl
Back cover. . . . . . . . . . Dix Noonan Webb
78 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Educational Coin Company
82 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Essie Kashani
51 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Frhwald Numismatik Auktionen
28 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . H.R. Harmer
81 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Ian Gradon World Notes
81 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Intercol London Collectables
81 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . International Bond and Share Society
81 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . John Pettit Pty. Ltd.
84 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . John Sandrock
82 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Kates Peper Money
84 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Keith Potter
3. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Krause Pubications
58 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . London Coins
80 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Mel Steinberg
83 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Michael Morris
82 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Nova Online, Inc.
22 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Olmstead Currency
79 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Pages Coins and Currency
60 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Pam West
6. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Pettinaro Brothers
52 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Ponterio & Associates
83 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Rosenblum Coins
80 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Saif Al-Mannai
Inside front cover. . . . . . Spink
Inside back cover. . . . . . . Stacks
80 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Staples Numismatics
42 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Token Publishing Ltd.
83 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . W. Ribi
83 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Whites (Jane)
36 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . William Barrett Numismatics, Inc
82 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . William Henderson
83 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . World Wide Notaphilic Service

Classifieds
Books for Sale
Democratic Republic of Viet Nam Coins & Currency
(covers 1945 to 1975).
Postpaid US$35 in the USA.
Howard A. Daniel III
The Southeast Asian Treasury P.O. Box 989
Deltaville, VA 23043-0989 US
hadaniel3@[Link]
Notes for Sale
Large, competitively priced selection of new and older notes.
British Commonwealth, African, Mexican, Latin American,
Russian, Asian, etc. Frequent lists.
Michael Knabe
P.O. Box 3648
Clovis, CA 93613-3648 US

All IBNS members are cordially invited to visit

my web site:

[Link]
30 articles now available on-line.
To test your numismatic knowledge,
click on Trivia Corner.
John E. Sandrock
IBNS Charter Member 26

Free Ads
I need any worldwide banknotes with Elizabeth II portrait
in exchange I can offer Middle East banknotes, for more
information please contact me via email.
Shamil Mhedy Salih IBNS # 9832
shamil_alhaialy@[Link]

Wanted: Katanga notes

Im looking for the following banknotes from Katanga
for my personal collection:
P5A 10 Francs, printed on both sides
P6A 20 Francs
P6b 20 Francs, dated 1.12.1960
P12b 100 Francs, 2nd issue, dated15.1.1963
Udi Sarfati
udi_sarfati@[Link]

84

IBNS Journal 47.4