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1 Dollar
| Issuer | Government of Fiji (Treasury) |
|---|---|
| Year | 1872-1873 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | Log in to see details |
| Currency | Log in to see details |
| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Shape | Rectangular |
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| Engraver(s) | Log in to see details |
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| Obverse description | The note is headed 'TREASURY NOTE' in large lettering across the upper centre, flanked by numeral '1' panels at left and right, with an ornate border of guilloche rosettes at each corner and along the edges. A central vignette incorporates the Fijian Coat of Arms surmounted by palm trees, with the place name 'LEVUKA' below. The body text reads 'The Bearer of this is entitled to receive from the Treasury Levuka ONE DOLLAR', with manuscript date, note number, and the Treasurer's signature in the lower right. |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Reverse description | The reverse is plain and unprinted, showing only the aged paper surface with no design, text, or ornamentation. |
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| Comments |
Among the earliest paper currency issued in Fiji, this note predates the formal cession of the islands to Britain in 1874 by a matter of months. The Government of Fiji at this point meant the administration of Ratu Seru Epenisa Cakobau, the paramount chief who had accepted a quasi-constitutional kingship in 1871 — a fragile arrangement that collapsed almost immediately under fiscal pressure, settler unrest, and the inability to service government debt. These notes were part of that failing monetary experiment.
S. T. Leigh & Co. of Sydney were primarily a printing and stationery firm, not a specialist banknote printer. The three signature fields — Smith, Clarkson, and Woods — reflect the small colonial bureaucracy signing off on a currency that would outlast the government that issued it by only a year or two.