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10 Shillings / 5 Rupees
| Issuer | Asiatic Banking Corporation |
|---|---|
| Year | 1822-1865 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | Log in to see details |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Engraver(s) | Log in to see details |
| In circulation to | Yes |
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| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Reverse description | Printed entirely in green; the centre field carries large numerals '10' and the word 'SHILLINGS' set within an intricate geometric guilloche pattern. Corner medallions bear '5 RUPEES' and '10 SHILLINGS' roundels, with denomination text in Sinhala and Tamil script bordering all four sides. |
| Reverse lettering | 10 SHILLINGS 5 RUPEES පත්තුවයි பத்து சிலிங் පහයි රුපියල් ஐந்து ரூபாய் (Translation: Ten shillings. Five rupees.) |
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| Comments |
The Asiatic Banking Corporation was a short-lived British overseas bank operating primarily in India and the Far East, and this dual-denomination note — payable in both shillings and rupees — reflects the practical messiness of sterling-rupee exchange across colonial trade routes where neither currency fully dominated local commerce. Smith, Elder & Co. are better remembered today as publishers — they handled Thackeray, Charlotte Brontë, and later Conan Doyle — but maintained a parallel printing operation that produced banknotes and commercial documents throughout the mid-nineteenth century.
The date range of over four decades suggests multiple issue series rather than continuous uninterrupted production.