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5 Rixdollars
| Issuer | Government of Ceylon |
|---|---|
| Year | 1809-1820 |
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| Printer | Gale & Butler Engravers, London, United Kingdom |
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| Obverse description | Black letterpress on plain paper. Seated Britannia within an oval laurel wreath vignette at upper left. Text body in copperplate script with trilingual legends in Sinhala, Tamil, and English arranged around the central promise-to-pay clause. |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | පතාග පහයි இறையால ஐந்து COLOMBO The Government of Ceylon promise to pay to the Bearer on demand the Sum of FIVE Rix Dollars in Copper Money at the Exchange of Forty Eight Stivers for One Rix Dollar on presenting this at the General Treasury. RIX DOLLARS Five COLOMBO Extd & Entd. (Translation: Five rixdollars.) |
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| Comments |
Ceylon was under British administration from 1796, but the rixdollar — inherited from the Dutch colonial period — remained the island's official currency unit until 1828. These notes circulated in a colony that had no mint and no local printing capability, hence the London press work by Gale & Butler, a firm better known for trade cards and commercial engraving than for currency production. The choice reflects expediency rather than prestige.
The eleven-year issue window is unusually wide for a single Pick number, suggesting either multiple print runs with subtle typographic variation or a protracted drawdown of a single stock held in Colombo. Distinguishing dates within the series requires close attention to manuscript inscription, as the year was written by hand at the time of signing.