£1 notes

A revolutionary note which was the first to include the embedded metal security thread. Signed by K.O. Peppiatt as Chief Cashier.

A revolutionary note which was the first to include the embedded metal security thread. Signed by K.O. Peppiatt as Chief Cashier.

During the Second World War the Bank of England was concerned that the currency could be counterfeited. To thwart counterfeiters it was decided to change the colour of the £1 note from the traditional green to blue pink Perhaps the most significant change was the introduction of an embedded security thread in the body of the note. We regard this feature as standard today but then it was considered revolutionary. The bank ditched the new colours once the war was over reverting to the traditional green. The new security feature was retained . This is a classic note which any Bank of England collection should include. It is important because it was the first note to contain an embedded metal security thread. Available in Fine, Very Fine and Extremely Fine and Uncirculated Image of note is a representative item from stock and will not necessarily be the actual item supplied.

A revolutionary note which was the first to include the embedded metal security thread. Signed by K.O. Peppiatt as Chief Cashier.

A revolutionary note which was the first to include the embedded metal security thread. Signed by K.O. Peppiatt as Chief Cashier.

D H F Somerset £1 Green Pictorial B341 DY21 Very last prefix ever for this denomination which was discontinued in favour of a coin Unc and scarce

Scarce Peppiatt £1 German Occupation notes overprinted 'Withdrawn from Circulation'. Unthreaded (B239A)

J B Page £1 Green Portrait B320 AU-Unc

These £1notes are Replacement notes, produced to replace notes damaged in production. They would have been inserted into packs and are identified by their prefix which usually contains the letter M. These are from the Portrait series when J B Page was Chief Cashier an the pregfixes could be either S-M, R-M or W-M (B321) Crisp AUnc.

J B Page £1 Green Portrait B321 Queen Eliz/ Young Britannia R-M Prefix Replacement Unc

J B Page £1 Green Portrait B322 Queen Eliz/ Young Britannia Unc

Crisp AUncirculated examples of the Hollom Replacement Portrait £1 with the catalogue reference B290. All replacement notes are scarce because they were issued in much smaller numbers. Their purpose was, as their name implies, to replace notes damaged in production. They were given a special prefix to identify them. In the case of the Portrait series, this included the letter M. Our Hollom Replacement Portrait £1 notes have the prefix –M. They are AUncirculated. Limited availability

KO Peppiatt was one of the longest serving Chief Cashiers at the Bank of England in the modern period. He served from 1934 until 1948. During that time there were 4 different varieties of the Britannia £1 note. The fourth and last variety was issued in September 1948, just 6 months before he stepped down to become an Executive Director of the bank. The Fourth Issue follows the regular Britannia £1 design except an embedded metal security thread is included (B260) Available in Crisp Good Fine-VF.

It was in 1960 when L K O’Brien was Chief Cashier that the Bank of England decided to issue notes with the portrait of the reigning monarch Elizabeth II. This was quite a departure because until that point the only illustration on Bank of England notes was of Britannia. Britannia was still featured but this time in a seal which appeared on the back of the notes. The portrait of the young Queen Elizabeth II appeared on the front. There were two regular varieties of the O’Brien Portrait £1 note with the catalogue references of B281 and B282. Here we offer the B281 £1 Note with the prefix A- in Uncirculated condition.

It was in 1960 when L K O’Brien was Chief Cashier that the Bank of England decided to issue notes with the portrait of the reigning monarch Elizabeth II. This was quite a departure because until that point the only illustration on Bank of England notes was of Britannia. Britannia was still featured but this time in a seal which appeared on the back of the notes. The portrait of the young Queen Elizabeth II appeared on the front There were two regular varieties of the O’Brien Portrait £1 note with the catalogue references of B281 and B282. Here we offer the first £1 note with the B282 prefix –A in Uncircualted condition

PS Beale was Chief Cashier from 1949 until 1954. During that period only 3 denominations were issued – the 10 shillings, £1 and £5. The £1 note signed by Beale followed the Britannia design. A vignette of a seated Britannia appears on the front (B268) On the back, running along to top of the note is a view of the façade of The Bank of England Headquarters in Threadneedle Street. Below set in a bed of acanthus leaves we find the Pistrucci reverse of the gold sovereign- the £1 equivalent at the time. We offer the Beale Britannia £1 note here in Fine condition.

P S Beale 10/- Red Brown Britannia 2nd Issue B266 Crisp Unc