£50 reward for industrial revolution pioneers on new bank note | Business | The Guardian Bank of England £50 reward for industrial revolution pioneers on new bank note Bank's new note evokes memories of age of steam with engineering greats James Watt and Matthew Boulton seen The new-style £50 note will celebrate the renowned 18th century partnership of entrepreneur Matthew Boulton and engineer James Watt. Photograph: Bank Of England/PA Bank of England £50 reward for industrial revolution pioneers on new bank note Bank's new note evokes memories of age of steam with engineering greats James Watt and Matthew Boulton seen Friday 30 September 2011 14.22 EDT First published on Friday 30 September 2011 14.22 EDT Close This article is 5 years old Sir Mervyn King, the governor of the Bank of England , has often voiced his yearning for a "rebalancing" of the economy towards neglected manufacturing, and he will put the nation's money where his mouth is next month when the Bank produces a new £50 note celebrating two pioneers of the industrial revolution.

The Bank will evoke the memory of the inventor James Watt and his Birmingham business partner, Matthew Boulton on the new note. Threadneedle Street announced that the note, replacing one featuring the first governor of the Bank of England, Sir John Houblon, will go into circulation on 2 November. It will be the first to feature two people (in addition to the Queen) and the first to be signed by Chris Salmon, the Bank's new chief cashier. Ed Miliband, whose speech to the Labour party conference last week lauded "good" businesses and castigated "asset strippers", would probably approve. Boulton, born in 1728, was an entrepreneur who started work in his father's Birmingham factory making buckles for shoes and knee-breeches, but he later built his own showpiece factory on Handsworth Heath. He later went into partnership with James Watt, who took the Newcomen steam engine, then the latest design, and made a series of crucial improvements, improving its efficiency and making it more commercial. By 1800, Watt's version was outselling its predecessor, and they were shipping it across the world.

Boulton and Watt worked together to pioneer the use of the steam engine in the cotton spinning industry; and Boulton also used Watt's engine to power minting machines, pressing coins at his Soho Mint in Birmingham, to boost the supply provided by the Royal Mint. The Bank governor chooses who will be featured on bank notes, and appears to be sending a strong message about where Britain's strengths once lay. Commercialising inventions, as Boulton and Watt managed to do, has long been seen as an achilles heel of the modern economy, with few boffins possessing the financial nous to build up a successful firm. Successive governments have tried to tilt the playing field to encourage spin-out firms from universities, and boost in-house research by corporations. Colin Brown, director of engineering at the Institute of Mechanical Engineers, said, "We can learn a lot from the hugely successful combination of Boulton, an entrepreneurial businessman, with Watt, a brilliant engineer.

"Today's challenges are every bit as great as those faced 200 years ago, and recognising our past engineering greats is an excellent way of inspiring the next generation to follow in Boulton and Watt's footsteps." The Bank invites the public to submit suggestions for historical figures who could feature on banknotes . Some, including William Shakespeare and Sir Christopher Wren, have been taken up. But Sir Mervyn has so far rejected other suggestions, from Geoffrey Chaucer, the author of the Canterbury Tales, to more contemporary figures including Sir Jimmy Savile, Mick Jagger and Terry Wogan. Just two women have so far been selected: Elizabeth Fry, the social reformer, and the pioneering nurse Florence Nightingale [see footnote]. For many workers, though, the worthy example of these fathers of the industrial revolution will be out of reach – because many people rarely get to see a £50 note, let alone hold on to it for long enough to examine the picture on the back. • This article was amended on 5 October 2011.

The story stated that only two women had ever been selected to appear on banknotes: to clarify: this is true of the Bank of England but the Clydsedale bank in Scotland features Mary Slessor, a Scottish missionary, on a £10 note and Elsie Inglis, a doctor who set up a maternity home for the poor in Edinburgh, on a £50 note. BBC NEWS | UK | Scotland | Glasgow, Lanarkshire and West | Steam giants on new �50 banknote Steam giants on new ï¿½50 banknote The note featuring Boulton and Watt will be introduced in 18 months Two giants of the industrial age are to appear on a redesigned Bank of England £50 note. Scottish engineer James Watt and his business partner Matthew Boulton, from Birmingham, developed the steam engine. Bank of England governor Mervyn King said their 18th Century innovations were essential in driving Britain's Industrial Revolution. It is the first time two portraits have appeared together on the note. An image of the Queen appears on the other side.

Inventor and mechanical engineer James Watt was born in Greenock in 1736 and carried out some of his first experiments with steam power in Glasgow. His partnership with Matthew Boulton, who owned the Soho Foundry in Birmingham, gave him access to the latest metal working techniques. Many of the advantages society now enjoys are due in large part to the vital role of engineering and the brilliance and foresight of people such as Boulton and Watt, Mervyn King Bank of England governor The resulting Boulton and Watt engine proved far more efficient than previous designs, and was soon being used in coal mines and cotton factories. The new banknote, to be launched in 18 months, includes an image of a steam engine and the Soho factory.

Mervyn King said: "So many of the advantages society now enjoys are due in large part to the vital role of engineering and the brilliance and foresight of people such as Boulton and Watt, whose development and refinement of steam engines gave an incredible boost to the efficiency of industry." He added: "The unique and rare opportunity that the bank has through its banknotes to acknowledge and promote awareness of our nation's heritage of artistic, social and scientific endeavour is an honour for us. "The bank's choice of Boulton and Watt, a reminder of the invaluable contribution from engineering and the entrepreneurial spirit to the advancement of society, I think, well reflects this." The new note will circulate initially in tandem with the existing £50 note featuring the first Bank of England governor Sir John Houblon, but the older note will gradually be withdrawn. Bookmark with: BBC News Online | Steam giants on new �50 banknote Steam giants on new ï¿½50 banknote 30 May 09 10:39 GMT Two giants of the industrial age are to appear on a redesigned Bank of England £50 note.

Scottish engineer James Watt and his business partner Matthew Boulton, from Birmingham, developed the steam engine. Bank of England governor Mervyn King said their 18th Century innovations were essential in driving Britain's Industrial Revolution. It is the first time two portraits have appeared together on the note. An image of the Queen appears on the other side. Inventor and mechanical engineer James Watt was born in Greenock in 1736 and carried out some of his first experiments with steam power in Glasgow. His partnership with Matthew Boulton, who owned the Soho Foundry in Birmingham, gave him access to the latest metal working techniques. The resulting Boulton and Watt engine proved far more efficient than previous designs, and was soon being used in coal mines and cotton factories. The new banknote, to be launched in 18 months, includes an image of a steam engine and the Soho factory.

Mervyn King said: "So many of the advantages society now enjoys are due in large part to the vital role of engineering and the brilliance and foresight of people such as Boulton and Watt, whose development and refinement of steam engines gave an incredible boost to the efficiency of industry." He added: "The unique and rare opportunity that the bank has through its banknotes to acknowledge and promote awareness of our nation's heritage of artistic, social and scientific endeavour is an honour for us. "The bank's choice of Boulton and Watt, a reminder of the invaluable contribution from engineering and the entrepreneurial spirit to the advancement of society, I think, well reflects this." The new note will circulate initially in tandem with the existing £50 note featuring the first Bank of England governor Sir John Houblon, but the older note will gradually be withdrawn.

bank of england banknote news - Pam West British Bank Notes bank of england banknote news Banknotes to value or sell E Mail pam@britishnotes.co.uk or Phone us 0208 641 3224 To purchase any of the English Banknotes below click on:- Browse notes - English Banknotes Buying £5 Polymer Churchill Victoria Cleland buying any 01's AB01 AC01 AD01 etc £8 each Also buying £10 LH01 £20 JH41 £50 AJ36 We are only interested in purchasing the above. We are not interested in AK47, it has reached an unrealistic price on internet auction/selling sites. Hyped up by artificial bidders. The Bank of England has printed 440 milion new £5 notes prefixes AA to AM. 60 million of each prefix. All prefixes are common. the only ones worth money are those listed above and special serials. ie. 123456 333333 888888 or similar.

£10 LH40 £20 JJ40 Any JJ £50 AJ70 £5 LE90 £10 KC40 £20 HE80 Any HE £50 R70 & L90 Turner has been chosen to appear ont he polymer £20 due out 2018 concept design issued by the Bank of England Any Prefix £20 HE Buying £50s Withdrawn 30th April 2014 £50 Kentfield H70 or higher & LL--, Lowther K71 to K98 & L70, Bailey L71 or higher British Notes always looking to buy Modern Banknotes Bank Staff make money for the Xmas Party look in the vault at the old boxes in the corner We buy anything Bank related: Specimen Cheques - Old Travellers Cheques - Old envelopes Banking Ephemera - Old counter stamps - Signs - etc Sir Winston Churchill will appear on the new polymer Bank of England £5 banknote due out mid 2016. Jane Austen will appear on a polymer £10 in 2017.

Fake Overprint see more details in article on front page Fake Overprint, wrong colour and font Fake Overprint C tips curl in, 9 curved base Genuine Overprint Genuine Overprint C has straighter top and bottom, 9 side sweeps to base British Banknote AA01 First prefix Salmon £50 Matthew Boulton and James Watt (specimen overprint overlaid by British Notes to comply with Bank of England guidelines) Prefixes logged AA AB AC AD AE AH AJ Salmon £50 banknote Issued 2nd November 2011 Boulton & Watt £50 Issued 2nd November Image of Whitbread Steam Engine and Matthew Boulton's Soho Manufactory ???? There have been no reports of replacements or column sorts for sometime now. We can only speculate that the Bank has changed its printing procedures to eliminate replacements and column sorts. We, as collectors, will be vigilant in seeking out these banknotes, but, it may be we have seen their demise. Two bundles of five pound banknotes we have obtained direct from the Bank via De la Rue are bound with a digitally printed De La Rue wrapper bands.

When you think about it, what is the point of replacing a damaged sheet with a replacement numbered sheet, costing time in printing and labour when you can just calculate the number of good sheets printed that day and so on, until you have completed the quantity required. The digital age has arrived and replacements and column sorts may be the first casualty. News Release Boulton and Watt The New Faces on £50 Banknotes The renowned 18th century business partnership of entrepreneur Matthew Boulton and engineer James Watt provides the historical figures to be portrayed on the Bank of England’s redesigned £50 banknotes. Bank of England Governor, Mervyn King, made the announcement this evening when he opened a new exhibition at the Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery: ‘Matthew Boulton: Selling what all the world desires’. Commenting on the choice, the Governor said, “Just as the Bank of England plays an essential role in the economy as the United Kingdom’s central bank, so too did Boulton and Watt’s steam engines and their many other innovations as essential factors in the nation’s Industrial Revolution.

So many of the advantages society now enjoys are due in large part to the vital role of engineering and the brilliance and foresight of people such as Boulton and Watt whose development and refinement of steam engines gave an incredible boost to the efficiency of industry.” “The unique and rare opportunity that the Bank has through its banknotes to acknowledge and promote awareness of our nation’s heritage of artistic, social and scientific endeavour is an honour for us. The Bank’s choice of Boulton and Watt, a reminder of the invaluable contribution from engineering and the entrepreneurial spirit to the advancement of society, I think, well reflects this.” The Boulton and Watt £50 banknote, to be launched in around eighteen months time, will be the second note in the Series F ‘family’which began with the introduction of the Adam Smith £20 note in 2007. Therefore its overall appearance will be similar. But for the first time two portraits will appear together on the reverse of the note, those of Boulton and Watt, along with the image of a steam engine and the Soho (Birmingham) Manufacture.

As with the Adam Smith £20 banknote however, continuity is provided with the current portrait of Her Majesty The Queen, which was first used in 1990 and which will be retained on the front of the note. Further details of the design and the range of security features to be included on the new note will be revealed when the new note is launched, within a full promotion and awareness campaign. Andrew Bailey, the Bank’s Executive Director – Banking Services and Chief Cashier, whose signature appears on Bank of England banknotes, also attended the Birmingham exhibition opening. Commenting on the plans for the new £50 banknote, he said, “Not only am I delighted with the proposed design for the banknote but I am pleased too that the Bank has the opportunity again to introduce advances in anti-counterfeiting measures which have come on stream.” As new-design banknotes are introduced so the notes they replace are withdrawn - although they can always be exchanged at the Bank of England for their face value. The Boulton and Watt £50 banknote will therefore circulate in tandem with the current £50 banknote first introduced in 1994.

This earlier note, which features Sir John Houblon, the first Governor of the Bank of England, will be gradually withdrawn from circulation with the final date for its status as legal tender to be announced in due course. The design includes separate portraits of Boulton and Watt, developed from images held by the Bank of England (Bank of England copyright). The image of the Soho Manufacture, where Boulton produced small metalware and which became the first steam-powered mint and another, of the Whitbread steam engine designed by Boulton and Watt and installed by Samuel Whitbread in his London brewery, are worked from images owned by Birmingham City Council. Permission to use these two images was kindly given by the Council. Acknowledgement of the copyright and permission would be appreciated. The Boulton and Watt £50 is the second in Series F with the Adam Smith £20 the first (2007). The Houblon Series E was introduced in 1994. The only previous £50 banknote design was the Wren banknote, introduced in 1981 and withdrawn from circulation in 1996.

Prior to this there was a white £50 in issue between 1725 and 1943. At the end of December 2008 there were some 171 million (170,846,025) £50 banknotes in circulation (6.7% of total notes by volume, 18.8% by value); over the whole of 2008 the average figures were 157 million (156,987,390) £50 notes (6.7% of total notes by volume, 18.9% by value). B339b Seen 82J & 82K ? Top number was 80 For Prefix Updates Click 'News & Info' & go to 'English Paper Money Updates' British Banknote Bank of England L06 Column Sort Banknote British Banknote Bank of England M01 First Prefix B390 seen on CC 46 52 54 62 65 76 77 80 all on higher numbers 900000 plus.

CC01 seen 928893 Serials British Banknote CC80 Last on First B400 one only found in bundle of one hundred notes New English £20 Banknote 13 MARCH 2007 The Bank of England has issued a 'new-style' £20 English Banknote This new English Banknote is the same size as the previous design. The banknote features Adam Smith on the reverse. Purple / Mauve predominating. Many new security features. Adam Smith, regarded as one of the fathers of modern economics. RELATED LINKS Adam Smith FRSE (5 June 1723 – 17 July 1790) was a Scottish moral philosopher and a pioneering political economist. One of the key figures of the intellectual movement known as the Scottish Enlightenment, he is known primarily as the author of two treatises: The Theory of Moral Sentiments (1759), and An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations (1776). The latter was one of the earliest attempts to systematically study the historical development of industry and commerce in Europe, as well as a sustained attack on the doctrines of mercantilism.

Smith's work helped to create the modern academic discipline of economics and provided one of the best-known intellectual rationales for free trade, capitalism, and libertarianism.

now depicted on the reverse of the New £20 pound banknote British Banknote First prefix Replacement banknote LL01 on new £20 Bank of England Chief Cashiers Signatures John Swanwick Bradbury, Norman Fenwick Warren Fisher, Charles Jewson, Abraham Newland, Henry Hase, Thomas Rippon, Mathew Marshall, William Miller, George Forbes, Frank May, Horace George Bowen, John Gordon Nairne, Ernest Musgrave Harvey, Cyril Patrick Mahon, Basil Gage Catterns, Kenneth Oswald Peppiatt, Percival Spencer Beale, Leslie Kenneth O'Brien, Jasper Quintus Hollom, John Standish Fforde, John Brangwyn Page, David Henry Fitzroy Somerset, George Malcolm Gill, Graham Edward Alfred Kentfield, Merlyn Vivienne Lowther, Andrew John Bailey, Chris Salmon Specialist banknote dealer Provincial banknotes English Banknotes for sale buying in circulation or new and old English Banknotes value Bradbury Fisher White Fiver Ten shilling note Error notes Specialist banknote dealer IBNS investment One hundred pound second hand banknotes paper currency The Banknote Store banknote yearbook Collect Paper Money Eire Republican Fenian Bond Auction Advice Wants Lists Managed Insurance Valuations Probate Valuations Auction Bidding

 Service Outright Purchase Commission Selling 35 Years Experience Confidentiality Assured World Currency British Isles we offer Military money Eire money Scotland banknote One stop shop People on banknotes new old current for sale banknote £5 LE46 £10 JH01 £20 HA01 £5 LE90 £10 KC40 £20 HD80 England | Banknote News Banknote News Breaking news about international paper & polymer money England Great Britain new 5-pound polymer note unveiled for 13.09.2016 introduction Jun 02, 2016 08:20 AM Category: Europe The Bank of England has printed 440 million polymer 5-pound notes it plans to introduce 13 September 2016.

A new 10-pound polymer note featuring Jane Austen is scheduled to be introduced in mid-2017. A new 20-pound polymer note featuring J.M.W. Turner is expected in 2020. The bank has not yet decided if or when it will introduce a new 50-pound note, nor if it will be paper or polymer. Courtesy of Antje Bird. England new 20-pound note reported for 2020 introduction Apr 22, 2016 03:48 PM Category: Europe According to a press release dated 22 April 2016 , the Bank of England has announced that J.M.W. Turner will appear on the next 20-pound polymer banknote due to be issued by 2020. Commenting on the decision, Bank of England Governor, Mark Carney said: “I am delighted to announce that J.M.W. Turner has been chosen to appear on the next £20 note. Turner is perhaps the single most influential British artist of all time. His work was transformative, bridging the classical and modern worlds. His influence spanned his lifetime and is still apparent today.

Turner bequeathed this painting to the nation, an example of his important contribution to British society." As shown in the concept image, the design on the reverse of the note will include: J.M.W. Turner’s self-portrait, painted c. 1799 and currently on display in the Tate Britain. One of Turner’s most eminent paintings The Fighting Temeraire; a tribute to the ship HMS Temeraire which played a distinguished role in Nelson’s victory at the Battle of Trafalgar in 1805. The quote - “Light is therefore colour” from an 1818 lecture by Turner referring to his innovative use of light, shade, colour and tone in his pictures. Turner’s signature from his Will, the document with which he bequeathed many of his paintings to the nation. The full design of the note and its security features will be unveiled closer to it entering circulation. Courtesy of Antje Bird, James Cadman, and Mark Irwin.

England to unveil new polymer 5-pound note design on 02.06.2016 Mar 12, 2016 04:16 PM Category: Europe According to a press release dated 10 March 2016 , the Bank of England will unveil the design of the new polymer 5-pound banknote on 2 June 2016. The note will be introduced in September 2016, and the existing paper 5-pound note will be gradually withdrawn thereafter. The polymer 10-pound note featuring Jane Austen will be introduced in late 2017 and a new polymer 20-pound note will be introduced by 2020. Courtesy of Aidan Work. Bank of England announces new 20-pound note to be polymer in 2018-2020 Sep 07, 2015 09:53 AM Category: Europe According to a press release dated 2 September 2015 , the Bank of England announced that the next 20-pound banknote will be printed on polymer, a substrate that is more secure, durable, and cleaner than traditional security paper.

In December 2013, the bank announced that the next 5- and 10-pound banknotes would be printed on polymer following a 10-week public consultation that found 87% of respondent were in favor of the change. The polymer 5-pound note featuring Winston Churchill will be issued in autumn 2016, the 10-pound polymer note featuring Jane Austen entering circulation a year later. The bank made the decision to move to polymer for the 20-pound note following extensive research into the developments in security features for notes printed on cotton-based paper and polymer since the 2013 decision was made. A competitive tender process for the supply of the polymer for the 20-pound note is expected to start in late 2015. The note, which will feature a visual artist nominated during the public nominations period held earlier this year, will enter circulation in 3-5 years’ time. A bank committee is considering which character will appear on the new 20-pound note. It received 29,701 nominations from the public after it announced it wanted to celebrate an artist on the note. Some 592 eligible visual artists are being considered for the honor.

The final decision will be made by the bank’s governor, Mark Carney. Favorites include the sculptor and artist Barbara Hepworth, the author Beatrix Potter, and fashion designer Alexander McQueen. Recommended reading: The secret codes of British banknotes Jun 25, 2015 07:44 AM Category: Europe | Miscellaneous The BBC has a very interesting article dated 25 June 2015 by Chris Baraniuk entitled " The secret codes of British banknotes ," which discusses the so-called EURion Constellation (aka Omron rings) patterns' role in deterring digital counterfeiting. Unmentioned in this article is that the simplest way to defeat this anti-counterfeiting feature is to use older scanners and photo editing software which do not interfere with the manipulation of banknote imagery. For example, Adobe Photoshop 3 will detect if you attempt to open a banknote image, but it will allow you to open, edit, and save same, but you can't print. With Photoshop 4, you're blocked from even viewing any image determined by the software to be a banknote. Courtesy of Anthony Rodov and Christof Zellweger.

Bank of England launches public nominations for new 20-pound note May 20, 2015 10:16 AM Category: Europe According to a press release dated 19 May 2015 , "the Governor of the Bank of England, Mark Carney, announced that the next £20 note will celebrate Britain’s achievements in the visual arts and he launched a public nomination period to seek people’s views as to who should be recognised on the next £20 note. Members of the public will have two months to nominate people of historic significance from the visual arts including artists, sculptors, printmakers, designers, craftspeople, ceramicists, architects, fashion designers, photographers and filmmakers – whose work shaped British thought, innovation, leadership, values and society. The public can nominate characters from within the field of visual arts on the Bank’s website." Courtesy of James Cadman.

Bank of England new sig 10-, 20-, and 50-pound notes confirmed Mar 04, 2015 04:05 PM Category: Europe According to a press release dated 24 February 2015 , "With effect from 3 March 2015, the Bank of England will be issuing into circulation £10, £20 and £50 notes bearing the signature of the current Chief Cashier, Victoria Cleland. These notes are the same design as those currently in circulation which bear the signature of Chris Salmon, the previous Chief Cashier, and of his predecessors Andrew Bailey and Merlyn Lowther. Cleland notes will circulate alongside the remaining Salmon, Bailey and Lowther notes, with the same status. The first £5 notes bearing the signature of Victoria Cleland will be printed on polymer and introduced into circulation from the second half of 2016. £10, £20 and £50 notes bearing Victoria Cleland’s signature will be made available to the cash industry from 3 March 2015 and will be dispensed from some ATMs and branch counters shortly thereafter.

Low serial numbered notes will not be available from the Bank’s counter." Anyone interested in buying one of these notes can contact the contributor by clicking the link below. Courtesy of Antje Maroussi and Pam West . England polymer 5- and 10-pound notes in video Mar 19, 2014 01:34 PM Category: Europe The CNN Money clip above discusses the Bank of England's plans to adopt polymer substrates for its banknotes, and there are even several shots of polymer 5- and 10-pound test notes at various points in the video. Courtesy of Mark St. Pierre. Bank of England 1- and 100-million pound notes in video Jan 30, 2014 08:44 AM Category: Europe Check out this video from Channel 4 News in which you can view the Bank of England's 1-million and 100-million pound notes.

England announces new 5- and 10-pound notes to be printed on polymer Dec 18, 2013 08:26 AM Category: Europe According to a press release dated 18 December 2013 , the Bank of England intends to print new 5- and 10-pound notes on polymer. The 5-pound note featuring Sir Winston Churchill will be issued in 2016, followed in 2017 by the 10-pound note featuring Jane Austen. Bank of England asks for public input before switching to polymer notes Sep 11, 2013 10:03 AM Category: Europe According to a press release dated 10 September 2013 , the Bank of England has revealed that it has been studying a switch from paper to polymer substrates over the past three years and found that the latter is cleaner, more secure, more durable, and more environmentally friendly. However, before finalizing on the decision to switch to polymer for its banknotes, the bank is undergoinh a two-month-long public consultation program ending on 15 November 2013.

The bank’s final decision, in the light of feedback, will be announced in December 2013. If a decision is taken to proceed with printing on polymer, this will initially only be for the new-style £5 and £10 banknote. Polymer banknotes would be introduced one denomination at a time, with the Churchill £5 in 2016 at the earliest. The new polymer notes would also be smaller than existing paper notes.

England confirms new 10-pound note to feature Jane Austen in 2016-2017 Jul 24, 2013 09:12 AM Category: Europe According to a press release dated 24 July 2013 , the Bank of England has "confirmed that Jane Austen will appear on a forthcoming Bank of England banknote: the next new character following Sir Winston Churchill…The Austen note will be issued as a £10 note, within a year of the Churchill £5 note, which is targeted for issue during 2016." Features of the design on the reverse of the Jane Austen note will include: The quote – “I declare after all there is no enjoyment like reading!” from Pride and Prejudice (Miss Bingley, Chapter XI). Portrait of Jane Austen. Commissioned by James Edward Austen Leigh (Jane Austen’s nephew) in 1870, adapted from an original sketch of Jane Austen drawn by her sister, Cassandra Austen.

An illustration of Miss Elizabeth Bennet undertaking “The examination of all the letters which Jane had written to her”– from a drawing by Isabel Bishop (1902-1988). The image of Godmersham Park. Godmersham was home of Edward Austen Knight, Jane Austen's brother. Jane Austen visited the house often and it is believed that it was the inspiration for a number of her novels. Jane Austen’s writing table – the central design in the background is inspired by the 12 sided writing table, and writing quills, used by Jane Austen at Chawton Cottage. Courtesy of Anthony Rodov. Bank of England responds to public demand for women on new notes Jul 10, 2013 08:02 AM Category: Europe The Bank of England has posted the response from Mark Carney , governor of the Bank of England, to a letter received on 1 July 2013 from Mary Macleod MP , who expressed diappointment that Elizabeth Fry is to be replaced on the 5-pound note by Winston Churchill. Courtesy of James Cadman.

England to feature Winston Churchill on new 5-pound note in 2016 Apr 26, 2013 08:27 AM Category: Europe According to a press release , the Bank of England will feature Winston Churchill on a new 5-pound note to be issued in 2016. Commenting on the choice, the Governor said: “Our banknotes acknowledge the life and work of great Britons. Sir Winston Churchill was a truly great British leader, orator and writer. Above that, he remains a hero of the entire free world. His energy, courage, eloquence, wit and public service are an inspiration to us all. I am proud to announce that he will appear on our next banknote." The plan is for the Churchill note to be issued as a £5 note, and that it shall be issued during 2016; but those choices may be reviewed as plans for issuing the new note are finalised. Features of the design on the reverse of the note will include: A portrait of Winston Churchill from a photograph taken in Ottawa by Yousuf Karsh on 30 December 1941 - © Yousuf Karsh/Camera Press.

A view of Westminster and the Elizabeth Tower from the South Bank looking across Westminster Bridge - © Abi Daker. The image of the Elizabeth Tower with the hands of the Great Clock at 3 o’clock – the approximate time on 13 May 1940 when Sir Winston Churchill declared in a speech to the House of Commons: “I have nothing to offer but blood, toil, tears and sweat.” This declaration is quoted beneath the portrait. A background image of the Nobel Prize medal which he was awarded in 1953 for literature, together with the wording of the prize citation. The trademark Nobel Prize® is reproduced with permission from the Nobel Foundation. Further details on the full design of the new note will be revealed when the new note is launched, together with a full promotion and awareness campaign. Courtesy of Paul Walters. England 1- and 100-million pound notes confirmed Jan 29, 2013 07:50 AM Category: Europe BBC News has an interesting article which discusses the Bank of England's "giant" and "titan" notes denominated in 1- and 100-million pounds. Courtesy of Christof Zellwegger.

Bank of England puts note printing out to tender Dec 12, 2012 03:43 AM Category: Europe According to a PrintWeek article dated 10 December 2012 , De La Rue's contract to print the UK's banknotes could come to an end as the Bank of England (BoE) has issued a tender notice asking up to five operators to bid for the £1bn contract. It is only the second time that the contract has been outsourced since De La Rue took over banknote printing for BoE in 2003. The contract, which could potentially run for up to 14 years, will see alternative suppliers bidding to print up to 12bn banknotes at BoE’s Debden, Essex facility. BoE expects that the 200 staff at the Debden plant will be transferred to the new supplier should the contract be awarded away from De La Rue. The new supplier would be responsible for the maintenance of Debden’s printing machinery, which is expected to be refurbished or replaced with the payment of capital costs coming from BoE.

The tender also states that the new supplier would need to accomodate changes in the features or substrates included in banknote production in line with security reviews by the governing body. Bidding operators must have at least three years of experience in commercial banknote printing and have printed at least 500m banknotes over a 12-month period at one site in the past three years as payment will depend on the volumes of accepted banknotes produced. The deadline for bids is 31 January 2013, and BoE expects that banknote production will commence from April 2015 following a six to twelve month transition period between suppliers. The successful participant will have the option to extend the contract by a further 36 months. One provision in the tender that has gotten the attention of banknote collectors is the requirement that the printers be able to handle printing on polymer, not just the paper substrate traditionally used on Bank of England notes. To be clear, however, the bank hasn't committed to printing new notes on polymer; it's simply ensuring that polymer is an option regardless of who it chooses as its new printer.

Nov 26, 2012 01:14 PM Category: Europe | North America According to a press release dated 26 November 2012 , the Bank of England has announced that Mark Carney has been appointed governor of the bank from 1 July 2013. He will succeed Sir Mervyn King. Carney is currently Governor of the Bank of Canada, having taken up his office on 1 February 2008. The move will likely mean new signature varieties for Canada's banknotes, but not for those in Great Britain, where the notes are signed by the chief cashier. Courtesy of Jim Chen, Alex Zlotin, and Aidan Work. Great Britain new sig 5-, 10-, and 20-pound notes confirmed Sep 12, 2012 07:44 AM Category: Europe According to a press release , on 12 September 2012, the Bank of England issued 5-, 10-, and 20-pound (US$8, $16, and $32, respectively) notes bearing the signature of the current chief cashier, Chris Salmon.

These notes are like the preceding issues (P391, P389, and P392) and will circulate in parallel. "The new notes bearing Chris Salmon’s signature were produced with printing plates made under a different manufacturing method. This has not changed the appearance of the notes. De La Rue previously used printing plates produced via the film exposure method. However, due to the diminishing demand for this technology in the printing community, De La Rue have changed to printing plates which are produced via the direct laser engraving method, known as ‘computer to plate’ technology." Anyone interested in buying one of these notes can contact the contributor by clicking the link below. Courtesy of Antje González and Pam West . England considering polymer notes Mar 11, 2012 09:25 AM Category: Europe CentralBanking.com has an interesting video on its web site interviewing Chris Salmon , the chief cashier at the Bank of England , discussing various matters related to the new 50-pound (US$78) note, as well as confirming that the BoE is examining polymer substrates for possible use in the future. Courtesy of Thomas Krause.

Interesting article on polymer notes Nov 26, 2011 11:39 AM Category: North America On 18 November 2011, the BBC published an interesting article, “ Who, What, Why: Why don't more countries use plastic banknotes? ,” which quotes BanknoteNews.com contributor Stane Štraus, publisher of the Polymer Bank Notes of the World web site. Courtesy of Aidan Work. England new 50-pound note confirmed Nov 02, 2011 08:28 AM Category: Europe 50 pounds (US$80). Red. Front: Bank of England seal; Bank of England headquarters building in London; Queen Elizabeth II. Back: Entrepreneur Matthew Boulton; horse with rider and carriage outside Boulton’s Soho factory building; Whitbread steam engine; engineer James Watt; cogs. Solid and windowed Motion security threads. Watermark: Queen Elizabeth II and electrotype £50. Printer: (DLR). 156 x 85 mm. 2010. Signature Chris Salmon. Intro: 02.11.2011.

England to issue new 50-pound note 02.11.2011 Sep 30, 2011 06:13 AM Category: Europe According to a press release dated 30 September 2011 , “the Bank of England will introduce a new-style £50 banknote into circulation on 2 November 2011. The note will feature the renowned 18th century business partnership of entrepreneur Matthew Boulton and engineer James Watt. “A range of new and enhanced security features have been incorporated into the design of the Boulton and Watt £50 banknote. Full details of these will be revealed when the new banknote is introduced into circulation, accompanied by a publicity and education campaign. “The Boulton and Watt £50 banknote marks the first time two portraits have appeared together on the back of a Bank of England banknote. It will also be the first banknote in circulation to be signed by Chris Salmon, who was appointed as the Bank’s Executive Director, Banking Services and Chief Cashier in April 2011.

“As new-design banknotes are introduced so the notes they replace are withdrawn – although they can always be exchanged with the Bank of England for their face value. “The Boulton and Watt £50 banknote will initially circulate in tandem with the current £50 banknote featuring Sir John Houblon, the first Governor of the Bank of England, which was introduced in 1994. The Bank will make an announcement regarding the withdrawal date of the Houblon £50 banknote in due course.” Additional information and images are requested so that this report can be confirmed. England contemplating polymer notes Sep 05, 2011 08:49 PM Category: Europe According to an article in The Independent dated 4 September 2011 , the Bank of England is considering a polymer 5-pound (US$8.05) note and a 50-pound (US$80) note with a transparent window (most likely De La Rue ’s Optiks) to improve durability and protect against counterfeiting. A source close to the BoE said: "This is at the evaluation stage.

A decision won't be made for the next year or two and production a little while after that, but a plastic £5 note is a possibility even though it won't provide as much security as other options." Courtesy Thomas Krause and Richard Miranda. UN releases $1.5 billion in Libyan banknotes from DLR Aug 31, 2011 08:47 PM Category: Europe | Africa The United Nations has approved the release of 1.86 billion (US$1.5 billion) worth of Libyan dinar banknotes printed by De La Rue . The notes had been held in the UK under sanctions imposed on the Gaddafi regime, but will now be delivered to the Central Bank of Libya . Courtesy of Thomas Augustsson. IBNS Book of the Year: Standard Catalogue of the Provincial Banknotes of England and Wales Jun 18, 2011 09:31 AM Category: Book The International Bank Note Society (IBNS) has awarded its 2011 Book of the Year, for a book published in 2010, to The Standard Catalogue of the Provincial Banknotes of England & Wales by Roger Outing.

The announcement was made at the Annual General Meeting of the IBNS in Memphis, Tennessee, USA in early June. Already considered an essential guide for collectors of English and Welsh paper money, Roger Outing’s book covers a wide range of bank note and banking information. While the book carries on the pioneering work of Geoffrey Grant’s The Standard Catalogue of Provincial Banks and Banknotes, there is much more to Mr. Outing’s work. The main section of the new work is an alphabetical listing of issuing banks by town, which also incorporates the multi-branch joint stock banks. This is followed by a full listing of the London private and joint-stock banks; most of which never issued banknotes, but the comprehensive coverage is a boon for bank historians, as well as collectors of cheques and other financial ephemera. A further section lists all non-bank issuers by town of origin – mostly collieries, ironworks and the like, which issued notes in the early years of the nineteenth century. The final section covers Skit Notes, an area not previously researched in detail. Skit Notes were often prepared for advertising, entertainment or political purposes, and quite often were designed to look similar to genuine notes.

While only items issued prior to 1900 are included, there are still details of some 63 ‘issues’. The Standard Catalogue of the Provincial Banknotes of England & Wales is an impressive work – not only is the information of great value, it is very well presented. A large format, hard-back publication of 520 pages, with over 850 colour illustrations, the book has been prepared to a high standard by its publishers – Token Publishing of the United Kingdom. This catalogue and price guide is a wonderful example of the investment of time and effort into the research of paper money and the IBNS congratulates Roger Outing on a valuable achievement and contribution to the world of paper money. Bank of England to withdraw 20-pound note on 30 June 2010 Mar 08, 2010 11:38 AM Category: Europe According to a Bank of England press release dated 8 March 2010 , the 20-pound (US$30.10) note with the portrait of composer Sir Edward Elgar on back will cease to be legal tender after 30 June 2010.

“This note has been gradually replaced by the Adam Smith £20 which was introduced in 2007. Announcing this today, the Bank of England assured holders of the Elgar £20 banknote that they could certainly use the notes up to, and including, 30 June. After that date the note will no longer have ‘legal tender’ status. The note will not have to be accepted in payment, or in change, in retail outlets after this date.” “For several months from the end of June banks, building societies and Post Offices will accept Elgar £20 notes for deposit to customer accounts and for other customer transactions. Agreeing to exchange the notes for non-customers is at the discretion of the individual institution. The Bank of England will always give value for these notes (and all other banknotes the Bank has issued).” “Andrew Bailey, the Bank of England’s Chief Cashier, said, ‘The Elgar £20 banknotes were first introduced in 1999 and we introduced the Adam Smith £20 banknotes three years ago. We said at the time that the two designs would circulate in tandem, with the Elgar notes gradually being withdrawn over the next few years.

It is time now to withdraw the Elgar £20 notes completely, with the Adam Smith £20 banknotes to be the only £20 note design continuing in circulation.’” Courtesy of Aidan Work. Bank of England to issue new £50 note in 2011 Jun 22, 2009 06:00 AM Category: Europe On 29 May 2009, the Bank of England announced that it would issue a new 50-pound note in early 2011. The new £50 note (US$82) will feature portraits of 18th century entrepreneur Matthew Boulton and engineer James Watt. Bank of England Governor, Mervyn King, said, “Just as the Bank of England plays an essential role in the economy as the United Kingdom’s central bank, so too did Boulton and Watt’s steam engines and their many other innovations as essential factors in the nation’s Industrial Revolution.

So many of the advantages society now enjoys are due in large part to the vital role of engineering and the brilliance and foresight of people such as Boulton and Watt whose development and refinement of steam engines gave an incredible boost to the efficiency of industry.” “The unique and rare opportunity that the Bank has through its banknotes to acknowledge and promote awareness of our nation’s heritage of artistic, social and scientific endeavour is an honour for us. The Bank’s choice of Boulton and Watt, a reminder of the invaluable contribution from engineering and the entrepreneurial spirit to the advancement of society, I think, well reflects this.” The Boulton and Watt £50 banknote will be the second note in the Series F family which began with the introduction of the Adam Smith £20 note on 13 March 2007. Therefore its overall appearance will be similar. But for the first time two portraits will appear together on the reverse of the note, those of Boulton and Watt, along with the image of a steam engine and the Soho (Birmingham) Manufactory.

As with the Adam Smith £20 banknote however, continuity is provided with the current portrait of Her Majesty The Queen, which was first used in 1990 and which will be retained on the front of the note. Further details of the design and the range of security features to be included on the new note will be revealed when the new note is launched. Bank of England refutes report of new notes depicting religious leaders Mar 10, 2009 07:06 AM Category: Europe According to a TotallyJewish.com article dated March 5, 2009 , “A new British banknote featuring a portrait of the Chief Rabbi is to be issued later this year in an effort to literally 'restore faith in the economy'. Sir Jonathan Sacks is one of five senior religious leaders whose images will appear on UK currency as part of a series of measures to tackle the credit crunch. The initiative was announced by the Chancellor of the Exchequer and the Bank of England this week.” This “news” item struck me as highly unlikely, so I wrote to the Bank of England for confirmation or denial. As I suspected, the TotallyJewish.com item is either false or was intended as satire.

Here is the full response I received from Malcolm Shemmonds, a media representative at the BoE: “I'm afraid that the news concerning this supposed new banknote issue by ourselves is totally untrue. There are no plans to circulate any new Bank of England notes in the immediate future. However, the Bank of England has a rolling banknote design programme and we may well decide to revise the design of our other notes in due course to reflect the same security features and theme (British historical figures) that have been incorporated within our current banknote series. “By way of background, you may be interested to know that we decide whom to feature on our banknotes on the basis of an enduring contribution to the advancement of society. Having said that, the choice of whom to celebrate on the banknotes is never easy, and any candidate will naturally have both staunch supporters and detractors. The final choice of who appears on our notes rests with the Governor of the Bank of England.” England issues new 20-pound note featuring Adam Smith Mar 13, 2007 05:39 PM Category: Europe Today the Bank of England issued a new £20 featuring Adam Smith, one of the fathers of modern economics.

This is the first design in a new series of notes from the bank known collectively as “Series F.” The new notes will circulate in parallel with the current £20 (Pick 390), which will be progressively withdrawn from circulation. Measuring 149 x 80 mm, the new £20 is the same size as the current note. The portrait of Queen Elizabeth II is retained on the front, but the new note features a brighter color purple, as well as a large silver holographic strip, a registration device, additional intaglio printing, improved watermark, and more UV features to deter counterfeiters. The new note bears the signature of Andrew Bailey, Chief Cashier. A portrait of Smith appears on the back of the new note, along with an engraving showing “The division of labour in pin manufacturing” with the parenthetical quote “and the great increase in the quantity of work that results” drawn from his major work, An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations.

The image of Adam Smith is based on a likeness of the portrait of him by James Tassie — Scottish National Portrait Gallery — and reproduced by permission; and the image of pin manufacturing is based on an original image, and by permission of The British Library. Adam Smith (1723 - 1790) is the first economist and the first Scotsman to appear on a Bank of England note. Pick 392: 20 pounds (US$38.60)). Issued March 13, 2007. Bright purple. Series F. QEII portrait, holographic stripe, registration device, additional intaglio printing, improved wmk, and more UV features. Signature: Andrew Bailey, Chief Cashier. Portrait of economist Adam Smith and illustration of “The division of labour in pin manufacturing” on back. 149 x 80 mm.

Birmingham's Matthew Boulton and James Watt appear on new £50 note - Birmingham Post Birmingham Post Birmingham's Matthew Boulton and James Watt appear on new £50 note 13:05, 30 Sep 2011 21:34, 30 May 2013 By Birmingham Post Two of Birmingham's historic giants who led the 18th Century Industrial Revolution are to be featured on the new £50 note. Share Get daily news by email Two of Birmingham's historic giants who led the 18th Century Industrial Revolution are to be featured on the new £50 note. The renowned business partnership of entrepreneur Matthew Boulton and engineer James Watt will be celebrated on the new note, which comes into circulation in November. It is the first time two portraits have appeared together on the back of a Bank of England bank note. Boulton was a leading entrepreneur of the Industrial Revolution. On leaving school he worked in his father's buckle-making factory in Birmingham, which he later inherited. He was particularly interested in the development of steam engines and the minting of coins.

In 1775 Boulton went into partnership with Watt, whose improvements to steam engine design had led to greater efficiency and cheaper running costs. The pair pioneered the use of the steam engine in the cotton spinning industry. Boulton established the Soho Mint, in Handsworth, where he produced high-quality coinage using steam-driven machinery. It was the first time the creation of identical, perfectly-round coins had been possible and it is believed they may have been the world’s first identical mass-produced objects. The new £50 banknote carries a much-quoted remark of Boulton’s to one of his many visitors: “I sell here, Sir, what all the world desires to have – POWER”. When he died in 1819, he was the first engineer to be honoured by a statue in Westminster Abbey and was ranked alongside geniuses such as Shakespeare and Newton. Scottish-born Watt was involved in several civil engineering projects during his life, including a survey and estimate in 1773 for a canal between Fort William and Inverness. The Caledonian Canal was constructed in the early 19th century.

He moved to Handsworth in Birmingham (but then in Staffordshire) shortly after his partnership with Boulton began. He died in 1819 and was buried at St Mary's Church, Handsworth. A range of new security features have been incorporated into the design of the new £50 note. The Bank of England said it would release more details about this, along with a publicity and education campaign, when the new note is introduced on November 2. New UK Banknote Celebrates James Watt, Patent Bully and Monopolist | Techdirt New UK Banknote Celebrates James Watt, Patent Bully and Monopolist from the litigation-is-easier-than-innovation dept As do many nations, England likes to put images of its great and good on banknotes.

In a somewhat quixotic attempt to stem the decline of what little manufacturing remains in the country, the governor of the Bank of England has come up with the following idea : Sir Mervyn King, the governor of the Bank of England, has often voiced his yearning for a "rebalancing" of the economy towards neglected manufacturing, and he will put the nation's money where his mouth is next month when the Bank produces a new £50 note celebrating two pioneers of the industrial revolution. The Bank will evoke the memory of the inventor James Watt and his Birmingham business partner, Matthew Boulton on the new note. Here's the orthodoxy regarding Watt and Boulton's contribution to innovation and the industrial revolution, as retold by the Guardian piece about the new banknotes: [Boulton] later went into partnership with James Watt, who took the Newcomen steam engine, then the latest design, and made a series of crucial improvements, improving its efficiency and making it more commercial. By 1800, Watt's version [of the Newcomen steam engine] was outselling its predecessor, and they were shipping it across the world.

Boulton and Watt worked together to pioneer the use of the steam engine in the cotton spinning industry; and Boulton also used Watt's engine to power minting machines, pressing coins at his Soho Mint in Birmingham, to boost the supply provided by the Royal Mint. What's missing from this rosy picture of jolly engineers and entrepreneurs working together to apply technology for the benefit of humanity is that Watt was one of the first to exploit the monopoly power of patents to stymie innovation by others : Once Watt's patents were secured and production started, a substantial portion of his energy was devoted to fending off rival inventors. In 1782, Watt secured an additional patent, made "necessary in consequence of ... having been so unfairly anticipated, by [Matthew] Wasborough in the crank motion". More dramatically, in the 1790s, when the superior Hornblower engine was put into production, Boulton and Watt went after him with the full force of the legal system. During the period of Watt's patents the United Kingdom added about 750 horsepower of steam engines per year.

In the thirty years following Watt's patents, additional horsepower was added at a rate of more than 4,000 per year. Moreover, the fuel efficiency of steam engines changed little during the period of Watt's patent; while between 1810 and 1835 it is estimated to have increased by a factor of five. After the expiration of Watt's patents, not only was there an explosion in the production and efficiency of engines, but steam power came into its own as the driving force of the Industrial Revolution. Over a thirty year period steam engines were modified and improved as crucial innovations such as the steam train, the steamboat and the steam jenny came into wide usage. The key innovation was the high-pressure steam engine � development of which had been blocked by Watt's strategic use of his patent. Many new improvements to the steam engine, such as those of William Bull, Richard Trevithick, and Arthur Woolf, became available by 1804: although developed earlier these innovations were kept idle until the Boulton and Watt patent expired.

So rather than representing all that is best about invention and industrial innovation, the story of Watt and Boulton turns out to be one of how the nascent patent system was abused to prevent progress in this field. Indeed, it offers one of the best demonstrations that patents often harm everyone � even patent-holders: Ironically, not only did Watt use the patent system as a legal cudgel with which to smash competition, but his own efforts at developing a superior steam engine were hindered by the very same patent system he used to keep competitors at bay. An important limitation of the original Newcomen engine was its inability to deliver a steady rotary motion. The most convenient solution, involving the combined use of the crank and a flywheel, relied on a method patented by James Pickard, which prevented Watt from using it. Watt also made various attempts at efficiently transforming reciprocating into rotary motion, reaching, apparently, the same solution as Pickard. But the existence of a patent forced him to contrive an alternative less-efficient mechanical device, the "sun and planet" gear. It was only in 1794, after the expiration of Pickard's patent that Boulton and Watt adopted the economically and technically superior crank.

As such, Watt and Boulton's appearance on the new £50 banknote is not so much a celebration of engineering excellence, as a timely reminder of the harm that patents and their thickets continue to wreak on true innovators today. Follow me @glynmoody on Twitter or identi.ca , and on Google+

Question: Who will appear on the new £50 bank note along with his business partner James Watt?
Answer: MATTHEW BOULTON