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5 Rupees Jaffna; Oriental Bank Corporation
| Issuer | Oriental Bank Corporation |
|---|---|
| Year | 1875 |
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| Size | 155 x 115 mm |
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| Obverse description | Black intaglio print on white paper with a fine geometric border. The British Royal Arms flanked by lion and unicorn supporters occupies the top centre, with two circular "FIVE RUPEES" vignettes at upper left and right carrying Sinhala and Tamil legends respectively. The promise-to-pay text is rendered in a flowing script below the bank name. |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | රුපියල් පහයි ஐந்து ரூபாய் FIVE RUPEES INCORPORATED BY ROYAL CHARTER JAFFNA, CEYLON 1st June 1875. THE ORIENTAL BANK CORPORATION Promise to pay the Bearer on demand at their Branch here, or at their Bank in Colombo FIVE RUPEES Value received. By order of the Court of Directors, Entd. Accountt. Agent. Perkins, Bacon & Co, London. Patent Hardened Steel Plate. (Translation: Five rupees.) |
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| Comments |
The Oriental Bank Corporation's Jaffna branch notes occupy a peculiar niche in South Asian numismatic history. The OBC was a British overseas bank chartered under Royal Charter, and its Ceylon branches — Colombo and Jaffna — issued their own place-of-payment notes independently of one another. By 1875, the bank was already overextended across its Indian and Pacific operations, a structural weakness that would culminate in its collapse in 1884 when a severe drop in commodity prices triggered a run it could not survive.
Perkins, Bacon had long supplied security printing to colonial banking operations throughout the British Empire. Notes issued specifically payable at Jaffna are considerably scarcer than Colombo equivalents, reflecting lower commercial volume in the northern peninsula.