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2 Rixdollars
| Issuer | Government of Ceylon |
|---|---|
| Year | 1806 |
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| Size | 115 x 94 mm |
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| Obverse description | Plain letterpress note printed in black on uncoated paper. The denomination appears in three scripts — Sinhala, Tamil, and English — arranged across the face, with the central English text stating the redemption terms at the General Treasury. The date and serial number appear twice, with two manuscript signatures at the foot. |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | පතාග දෙකයි இரணடு இறையால COLOMBO 1st March 1806 Payable in Copper on demand at the General Treasury at the rate of Forty Eight Stivers for One Rix Dollar. ( Rix Dollars 2.) Exd. & Entd. ලන්කවේ ආන්ඩුව இலங்கையின் அரசாட்சி (Translation: Two rix dollars. The Government of Ceylon.) |
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| Comments |
The Rixdollar was a Dutch colonial currency inherited by the British when they took formal possession of Ceylon from the Batavian Republic in 1796. By 1806, the colonial administration was still issuing notes denominated in the old Dutch unit — a pragmatic concession to a population uninterested in another monetary transition. The British would eventually demonetize the Rixdollar in 1828, fixing it at 1s 6d sterling for redemption purposes, a rate widely considered unfavorable to local holders.
Production at the Government Press in Colombo meant limited technical resources and no access to the security printing infrastructure available in London. These early Ceylon issues are among the more primitively executed colonial notes of the period, and genuine examples from 1806 are extremely rare.