1 Cent,5 Cents,10 Cents and 1 Dollar Queen Elizabeth Hong Kong Banknote Issued by The Hong Kong Government

Posted by slang on May 3, 2010

As mentioned in the earlier article (history of Hong Kong banknotes), there were four(4) banknote issuing authorites of which is the The Hong Kong Government issuing the 1 cent, 5 cents, 10 cents & 1 dollar Queen Elizabeth bank notes.

1 Cent(1971-1981) Queen Elizabeth Bank note issued by Hong Kong Government (uniface note re: other side of the banknote is blank)

Above is the 1 cent, brown (1971-81) issue ( 41 x 89mm) which is cheaper than the one issued 1961-1971 (41 x 89mm).

Besides the 1 cent, we have the:
• 5 cents, green (1961-1971) ( 48 x 85mm) – uniface banknote
• 10 cents, red (1961-1971) (52 x 103mm)- uniface banknote

Next, picture below shows the 1 dollar, green dated 1.7.1957.

1 dollar dated 1.7.1957 Hong Kong Bank note issued by Hong Kong Government

Besides, we have other dates issued for this 1 dollar Hong Kong banknote:
• 1 dollar, green(1.7.1952)
• 1 dollar, green(1.7.1954)
• 1 dollar, green(1.7.1955)
• 1 dollar, green (1.6.1956)
• 1 dollar, green(1.7.1958)
• 1 dollar, green (1.7.1959)

Comparatively speaking, those 1 dollar, banknote relating after 1956 issue are relatively cheaper than prior to 1956.

History Of Hong Kong Banknotes

Posted by slang on

Banknotes were not produced in Hong Kong not until the 1860s, when the Oriental Bank, the Chartered Bank of India, Australia and China and the Hong Kong and Shanghai Banking Company began issuing notes. Denominations issued in the 1860s and 1870s included 1, 5, 10, 25, 50, 100 and 500 dollars. These notes were not accepted by the Treasury for payment of government dues and taxes, although they were accepted for use by merchants. The twenty five(25) dollar notes did not survive beyond the end of the 19th century, whilst the 1 dollar notes (only produced by the HSBC) were issued until 1935.

Compared to other countries, the issuance of Hong Kong dollar notes  is not solely controlled by the Central Bank. In fact there are four authorities namely:-

• Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA), the governmental currency board of Hong Kong and
• HKMA authorized appointees, the three local commercial banks namely Oriental Bank, The  Chartered Bank of India, Australia and China and The Hong Kong and Shanghai Banking Company  These three commercial banks issue their own banknotes for general circulation in Hong Kong.

Under the Currency Ordinance of 1935, the banknotes in denominations of 5 dollars and above issued by the above-said  local banks, (the Mercantile Bank of India Limited, the Chartered Bank of India, Australia and China and the Hong Kong and Shanghai Banking Corporation, were all declared legal tender. The government only took over production of 1 dollar notes.

A bit of banknotes history in Hong Kong:

1. In 1941, the government introduced notes for 1, 5 and 10 cents due to the difficulty of transporting coins to Hong Kong caused by the Second World War (a ship carrying 1941 1 cent coins was sunk, making this unissued coin very rare). Just before the Japanese occupation, an emergency issue of 1 dollar notes was made consisting of overprinted Bank of China 5 yuan notes. {Incidentally, the first private bank, the Oriental Bank, was founded in 1845}.
2. In 1945, paper money production resumed essentially unaltered from before the war, with the government issuing 1, 5 and 10 cents, and 1 dollar notes, and the three banks issuing 5, 10, 50, 100 and 500 dollar notes. 1 dollar notes were replaced by coins in 1960, with only the 1 cent note issued by the government after 1965.
3. In 1975, the 5 dollar notes were replaced by a coin, whilst 1000 dollar notes were introduced in 1977. The Mercantile Bank was absorbed by the HSBC in 1978 and ceased issuing notes.
4. In 1985, 20 dollar notes were introduced, whilst, in 1993, a 10 dollar coin was introduced and the banks stopped issuing 10 dollar notes.
5. In 1994 the HKMA gave authority to the Bank of China to issue notes.
6. After a less-than-successful trial from 1994 to 2002 to move the 10-dollar denomination from the banknote format (issued by the banks) to the coin format (Government-issued), 10 dollar banknotes are currently the only denomination issued by the HKMA, having acquired the note printing plant at Tai Po from the De La Rue Group of the UK on behalf of the Government. The older 10-dollar banknotes are, although rare and being phased out, still circulating.
7. There were an issuance of  Commemorative Polymer Ten dollar note which was issued in July 2007 to commemorate the 10th anniversary of Hong Kong’s return to China. The new notes will circulate along with other issues for a trial period of two years, though the initial batch released was largely snapped up by collectors

$1000, 21 March 1953, Queen Elizabeth II Auctioned in Mavin International

Posted by slang on April 12, 2010

Earlier in my article dated 12 February 2010, we looked at one Malaya and British Borneo $1,000 21 March 1953 being auction at Mavin International, Singapore with the following description:

$1000, 21 March 1953, Queen Elizabeth II, (P.6a; Boon B6a), serial no. A/1 27602, graded PMG 50 EPQ, about uncirculated, extremely rare. This note and the Malaya $1000 are not from the small group sold by the Board of Commissioners of Currency Singapore in the 1990s. They are from a family heirloom. Although some handling is seen, as is to be expected on a note of this size, this note would have resided unmolested in a safe for decades. It still retains a wonderful sheen that fully justifies its Exceptional Paper Quality designation.
Reserve Price: US$30,000-up . This bank note  actually realised US$86,000

Below the banknote photo:  

$1000, 21 March 1953, Queen Elizabeth II,