3096) A $500 (Five Hundred Dollars) Banknote, issued by the Bank of Guyana:
About Guyana:
Guyana, a country on South America’s North Atlantic coast, is defined by its dense rainforest.
English-speaking, with cricket and calypso music, it is culturally connected to the Caribbean region.
Its capital, Georgetown, is known for British colonial architecture, including the tall, painted-timber St. George’s Anglican Cathedral. A large clock marks the facade of Stabroek Market, a source of local produce.
With an area of 215,000 square kilometres, Guyana is the third-smallest sovereign state on mainland South America after Uruguay and Suriname.
The main economic activities in Guyana are agriculture (production of rice and Demerara sugar), bauxite and gold mining, timber, shrimp fishing and minerals.
The Guyanese dollar has been the unit of account in Guyana (formerly British Guiana) since 29.01.1839.
Following Guyana’s independence in 1966, the Guyanese dollar was re-introduced.
Banknotes:
Private Banknotes were introduced in the late 19th century by the British Guiana Bank and the Colonial Bank.
Both Banks issued Banknotes in the denominations of 5, 20 and 100 dollars.
The British Guiana Bank issued notes until 1907, with the Colonial Bank issuing notes until 1917.
The Colonial Bank was taken over by Barclays Bank, which issued Banknotes in denominations of 5, 10, 20 and 100 dollars between 1926 and 1941.
In 1909, the Royal Bank of Canada introduced 100 dollars Banknotes, followed in 1913 by 5 and 20 dollars notes.
From 1920, the notes also bore the denomination in sterling.
100 dollars were issued until 1920, with the 5 and 20 dollars issued until 1938.
Paper money production specifically for British Guiana ceased in 1942 and local Banknotes were replaced by BWI$ (British West Indies Dollar) Banknotes in 1951.
In 1955, the BWI$ was decimalised and coinage was issued in the name of the "British Caribbean Territories, Eastern Group".
In 1965, the East Caribbean dollar (EC$) replaced the BWI$ and circulated in British Guiana for a year until, following independence in 1966, the Guyanese dollar was introduced, replacing the East Caribbean dollar at par.
On 15.11.1965, Banknotes were introduced in denominations of 1, 5, 10, and 20 dollars.
A Second Series was issued between 1988 and 1992 consisted of 20-, 100-, and 500-dollar denominations.
The 1996–1999 Series included 20, 100, 500, and 1000 dollars.
The 2000–2002 Series included 500- and 1000-dollar notes.
New Banknotes of 100 and 1000 dollars were issued on 29.03.2006.
The 100-dollar note is similar to the preceding issue of the same denomination, except the design has been slightly modified with larger numerals for the denomination in the upper left front corner, a different screen trap background pattern, and shortened printer imprint.
Both notes now have designs that extend to the borders and watermarks that include an electrotype map of Guyana.
The 2011 issue included 500 and 1000 dollars with brand new security features, the most notable is the holographic stripe with a colorful macaw replacing the OVD patch used on the previous issues.
On 15.11.2013, the Bank of Guyana unveiled the 5,000-dollar Banknote which was issued on December 9th.
The $500 (Five Hundred Dollars) Banknote:
The Front of the $500 Banknote features the official Coat of Arms in centre with the country’s map to right.
The Back of the $500 Banknote depicts the Guyana Parliament building.
This multi-coloured note has a Parrot as its watermark.
Other features which were present in the 2011-2013 Banknote issues:
- Banknote issued by: The Bank of Guyana.
- No Date was exhibited/printed on the Banknote.
- Its dimensions are - 156.00 mm x 65.00 mm.
- The shape of this Banknote is Rectangular.
- The watermark exhibited a Red Macaw parrot head and electrotype “500”.
- The material used to print the Banknote was - cotton paper.
- There is a windowed security thread with demetalised "GUYANA".
- New security sign - is the bank logo and red parrot in holographic stripe.
- The Printer of this Banknote is Giesecke & Devrient, Munich, Germany.
- The predominant colour of this Banknote is - multicoloured front and back printing, predominantly yellow, dark red and purple.
- Description of the Front: gradient guilloche background composed of repeating patterns. Texts in English. Prefix and ascending numbering in black. On the right, a map of Guyana's natural resources. In the center, the coat of arms of the Bank of Guyana. Watermark on the left. Two combinations of signatures in purple with the Governor and the Minister of Finance. Value "$ 500" in the corners.
- Description of the Back: gradient guilloche background composed of repeating patterns and rosettes. Texts in English. View of Georgetown Parliament in the center. Canon. Value "$ 500" in the corners.
(The above Banknote is from the collection of Jayant Biswas. Banknote scanned and post researched and written by Rajeev Prasad).
Links to Posts on Guyana:
1) A $500 (Five Hundred Dollars) Banknote issued by the Bank of Guyana
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Rajan Trikha has commented:
ReplyDelete"Very informative post 👍"
Thank you, Trikha sahab.
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