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25 Francs
| Issuer | Comptoirs Français des Nouvelles-Hébrides |
|---|---|
| Year | 1921 |
| Type | Standard circulation banknote |
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|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | COMPTOIRS FRANÇAIS DES NOUVELLES-HÉBRIDES Société Anonyme au Capital de 3.000.000 Francs PORT-VILA, le 22 Août 1921. Nous promettons de payer a vue en espéces et au porteur à Nouméa on à Port-Vila la somme de VINGT-CINQ FRANCS Accept peur VINGT-CINQ FRANCS payable a Nouméa HENRY COND`AMIN, INV. Imp. CHAIX. Paris 3481 - 1908 (Translation: French Counters in the New Hebrides Société Anonyme with Capital of 3,000,000 Francs Port-Vila, August 22, 1921. We promise to pay on sight in cash and at carrier in Nouméa or in Port-Vila the sum of Twenty-five Francs. Accept for Twenty-five Francs payable in Nouméa.) |
| Reverse description | Printed entirely in red on a fine guilloche underprint composed of repeated ornamental motifs filling the entire field, the reverse presents a central medallion enclosing the numeral 25 within a dotted circle, set within an elaborate cartouche of crossed spears, foliage, and tropical fronds. Indigenous pottery vessels are placed at the lower left and right, flanking the central device. |
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| Comments |
The Comptoirs Français des Nouvelles-Hébrides was a commercial bank, not a colonial government authority — its right to issue currency in the New Hebrides derived from a concession rather than any formal monetary charter. This 1921 note is the earliest Pick-listed issue for the territory, predating the establishment of the Nouvelles-Hébrides franc as a properly regulated currency by several years.
Imprimerie Chaix was primarily a commercial and advertising printer, best known for railway posters. Their banknote output was limited, which partly explains why the production quality of this series sits outside the usual French colonial printing tradition dominated by the Banque de France's own presses.