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1/10 Rupee
| Issuer | Clunies-Ross Family (Cocos (Keeling) Islands) |
|---|---|
| Year | 1902 |
| Type | Standard circulation banknote |
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| Obverse description | The upper centre of the note carries the Clunies-Ross Coat of Arms vignette, flanked by the issuer legend 'KEELING' to the left and 'COCOS' to the right, with 'ISLANDS.' centred below. To the upper right appears the serial number prefix and numeral. At left, the fractional denomination '1/10' is printed in red within a plain red circle. A dashed-border panel in the lower half contains the exchange clause in letterpress, beneath which appears the manuscript signature of G. Clunies-Ross alongside the date '1902.' in the lower left. |
|---|---|
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| Reverse description | The reverse is entirely unprinted, presenting a plain cream paper surface with no design elements, text, or ornamentation of any kind. |
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| Comments |
The Clunies-Ross family ran the Cocos (Keeling) Islands as a private fiefdom from the early nineteenth century until Australian authorities finally terminated the arrangement in the 1970s and 1980s. Their scrip currency — denominated in Rupees and fractions thereof — was a deliberate instrument of labor control. Coconut plantation workers were paid in these notes, which could only be spent at the family-owned store. No external trade was possible for those without access to real currency.
The 1902 series was printed in substantial quantity for an island population that never exceeded a few hundred souls. That figure points squarely at systematic hoarding by collectors, not genuine circulation demand.