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5 Pounds
| Issuer | Government of Malta |
|---|---|
| Year | 1914 |
| Type | Standard circulation banknote |
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| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | Government of Malta FIVE POUNDS STERLING. This Note, issued under the authority of Ordinance No. VIII of 1914, assented to by his Excellency the Governor with the special permission of His Majesty the King, is legal tender for all purposes, and is convertible into gold at the Treasury on days to be notified by Government Notice. 14th August, 1914. By Command JOHN E. CLAUSON Lieutenant-Governor and Chief Secretary to Government £ FIVE |
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| Protection description | Embossed seal of Malta applied at center of the obverse. |
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| Comments |
Malta's earliest government-issued paper currency came about because the island's commercial banks were not trusted to manage wartime monetary supply. The 1914 notes were issued under emergency authority at the outbreak of the First World War, when specie hoarding created an immediate small-denomination shortage — though a 5-pound note addressed the other end of the problem, replacing gold sovereigns that had vanished from circulation within weeks of hostilities beginning.
The embossed seal was the sole mechanical security feature, a notably minimal approach even by the standards of colonial treasury notes of the period.