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Tuesday, 19 January 2021

1639) A 200 Escudo Cotton Banknote issued in place of the circulating Polymer Version, Cape Verde: An unsuccessful variant of a "Polymer" Banknote has been superseded by a "Cotton Paper" Banknote: Date of issue: 07.01.2021:

1639) A 200 Escudo Cotton Banknote issued in place of the circulating Polymer Version, Cape Verde: An unsuccessful variant of a "Polymer" Banknote has been superseded by a "Cotton Paper" Banknote: Date of issue: 07.01.2021:

About Cape Verde:

Cape Verde or  the "Republic of Cabo Verde," is an island country in the central Atlantic Ocean. The ten volcanic islands in its archipelago have a combined land area of about 4,033 square kilometres (1,557 sq mi).

The islands lie about 600 to 850 kilometres (320 to 460 nautical miles) west of Cap-Vert which gave its name to the islands. On this cape - the westernmost point of continental Africa - lies Dakar, the capital of Senegal. Cape Verde forms part of the Macaronesia ecoregion, along with the Azores, Canary Islands, Madeira, and the Savage Isles.

Until the 15th Century, the archipelago remained uninhabited , when Portuguese explorers discovered and colonized the islands, establishing the first European settlement in the tropics.

In the 16th and 17th Centuries, the archipelago was found to be ideally located for a role in the Atlantic slave-trade and the islands grew prosperous  attracting merchants, privateers, and pirates.

In the 19th Century, the suppression of the Atlantic slave-trade led to economic decline and emigration. Cape Verde gradually recovered as an important commercial centre and stopover for shipping routes. Incorporated as an overseas department of Portugal.

In 1951, the islands continued to campaign for independence, which they achieved in 1975.

Since the early 1990s, Cape Verde has operated as a stable representative democracy, and remains one of the most developed and democratic countries in Africa. Lacking natural resources, its developing economy is mostly service-oriented, with a growing focus on tourism and foreign investment. Its population of around 550,000.

 Cape Verde is a member state of the African Union.

The Escudo  is the currency of the Republic of Cape Verde:

In 1914, the Escudo became the currency of Cape Verde. It replaced the Cape Verdean Real at a rate of 1000 Réis = 1 Escudo.

 Until 1930, Cape Verde used Portuguese coins, although banknotes were issued by the Banco Nacional Ultramarino specifically for Cape Verde beginning in 1865.

Until independence in 1975, the Cape Verde Escudo was equal to the Portuguese Escudo. 

Banknotes:

In 1914, the Banco Nacional Ultramarino introduced Banknotes in denominations of 4, 5, 10, 20 and 50 Centavos. 

In 1921,  Banknotes for 1, 5, 10, 20, 50 and 100 Escudos were issued. 

In 1945, the next series of Banknotes, was introduced, which omitted all denominations below 5 Escudos (which had been replaced by coins) and included 500 Escudo Banknotes. 

In 1953, 10 Escudo notes were replaced by coins, with the 5 Escudo note also withdrawn.

On 05.07.1975, after independence, notes were issued for 100, 500 and 1000 Escudos on 01.07.1977

In 1989, the Second Series of Banknotes was introduced  and consisted of 100, 200, 500, 1000 and 2500 escudos.

In 1992, the Third Series of Banknotes was introduced in 1992 in denominations of 200, 500, 1000, with the addition in 1999 of 2000and 5000 Escudo Banknotes. 

In 2005, the 200 Escudo note was redesigned, followed by the 500 and 1000 in 2007.

On 22.12.2014, the Banco de Cabo Verde introduced a new Third Series of Banknotes that honor Cape Verdean figures in the fields of literature, music, and politics. 

It consists of denominations of 200, 1,000 and 2,000 Escudos issued in 2014, with the 200 Escudo denomination being printed on polymer

In 2015, Banknotes of 500 and 5,000 escudos were issued .

Now a reversal of Polymer 200 Escudo Banknote back to Cotton Paper:

On 07.01.2021, the Bank of Cabo Verde put a new version of its 200-Escudo Banknote into circulation.

On the Centenary of the birth of Cape Verdean doctor and writer Henrique Teixeira de Sousa (1919–2019) a need was felt to strengthen the 200-escudo denomination.

 As such, the new polymer banknote has been "reformulated" by the Bank. In other words, this means that the new Banknote is made of cotton fiber, and is replacing the existing polymer version, the only Cabo Verde Bank Note made of the plastic material.  The two versions will circulate simultaneously.

The switch  from polymer back to Cotton has been carried out, because the current polymer banknote has been widely criticized and sometimes rejected in the country for its difficulty in handling. 

Paradoxically the same terminology is being used by the Bank for the cotton variant which  has long been claimed for polymer, that “its renewed appearance incorporates technological advances that provide greater safety and durability, with reduced costs and impact on the environment, and facilitate the recognition of integrity and handling by the public.”

The two versions are similar in appearance.



 On the Front of the 200 Escudo Banknote,  is a facing portrait of Henrique Teixeira de Sousa, who was not only an important public health doctor, but also a novelist, poet, and essayist who is long considered one of the paragons of the national literature. 

Next to him is a map of the island of Fogo, where de Sousa made lasting contributions to public health. 

On the map of the island is a bunch of grapes from the region of Chã das Caldeiras, a small town of about 700 inhabitants in the crater of the island’s Pico do Fogo volcano. A view of the volcano dominates the Back of the 200 Escudo Banknote

A watermark from de Sousa’s portrait takes up about a third of the surface. The background is made up of microtext.

The Dimensions of the Banknote are 124mm x 62 mm. 

The Pre-dominant colour is red on both the Front and Back, with green, yellow and pink inflections.




Some other interesting posts from the African Continent on this blog:







15) Archosauria (The Rise of the Dinosaurs): "Natura series" of Five Gold Coins from the "Palaeontology Collection": A set of Gold Coins brought out by the South african Mint in 2018

16) New Circulation coins Series, Kenya: introduced by the Central Bank of Kenya on 11.12.2018


17) Sudan: A 100 Pounds Banknote being issued by the Central Bank of Sudan by End February 2019


18) Algeria: i) Introduction of two new denominations of 500 and 1,000 Algerian Dinars (AD), which will kick-start the new "Fifth Series of Algerian Dinar Banknotes" ii) A 100 Algerian Dinar tri-metallic coin which wil replace the 100 Dinar circulating Banknote of the same denomination

19) South Africa: "The Big Five Silver Coin Series": 1) First Coin in the Series brought out by the South African Mint features the African Elephant on a Five Rand Coin as the first variant issued in 02/2019: 2) Later Coin issues will feature the Lion, Leopard, Rhinoceros and the Buffalo


20) 25 Years of Constitutional Democracy in South africa (SA25): Celebrating the milestone with the issue of six circulation coins (R2 five  coins & R5 one Coin) and three Commemorative Coins (Gold R500, Sterling Silver R50 & Bronze Alloy R50) issued by the South African Reserve Bank (SARB) in partnership with the South African Mint: Coin release dats: 04/2019 & 05/2019

21) Dr. Tawhida Ben Chiekh (1910-2010), Tunisia: A new 10 Dinar Banknote issued by the "Banque Centrale de Tunisie" (Central Bank of Tunisia) honouring the pioneering doctor, who replaces Dido (Queen Elissa), the founder & first Queen of Carthage on the 10 Dinar Banknote: Date of Banknote issue: 27.03.2020







Other interesting posts from Israel:





18) Murals in Israel: A set of three stamps of the values of 4.10 NIS, 5.00 NIS and 6.50 NIS issued by Israel Postal Company (Israel Post): Date of Stamp set issue: 08.09.2020

19) Modern Jewish Art Mandalas, Israel: Stamps issued by Israel Postal Company (Israel Post) on three Blessings - Kingship (2.50 NIS), Remembrances (7.40 NIS), Shofar (8.30 NIS): Date of Stamp set issue: 08.09.2020



Birds of Israel Coin Series:



"Views of Jerusalem" Gold and Silver Bullion Coin Series:

2) The City of David: Fourth Coin in the Gold and Silver Bullion Coin Series issued by ICMC, Israel & the Holy Land Mint, Israel (2019)


3) The Western Wall, Israel: Sixth Coin in the "Views of Jerusalem" Coin Series: Gold and Silver Bullion Coins minted by the Israel Coins & Medals Corporation (ICMC) Ltd: Year of Coins issue: 2020

"Ancient Cities of the Holy Land Gold and Silver Bullion Coin Series":

1) Old Jaffa, Israel: The "Ancient Cities of the Holy Land" Gold & Silver Bullion Coin Series minted by the Israel Coinsand Medals Corporation (ICMC) through the Holy Land Mint: Date of issue: 01.03.2020


For some other interesting posts from Italy/The Vatican, please visit the following links:

Some other interesting links to posts on this blog on Currencies of the Middle-East:

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