Bermuda

Bermuda new signature 10-dollar note (B232b) confirmed

Bermuda_BMA_10_dollars_2009.01.01_B232b_P59b_A-1_385421_f
Bermuda_BMA_10_dollars_2009.01.01_B232b_P59b_A-1_385421_r
Like B232a, but new signatures (Cox/Unknown). Prefix A/1.

Courtesy of KK Lim ().

Bermuda new signature 2-dollar note (B230c) confirmed


Like B230b, but new signatures (Gerald D.E. Simons and Ronald Simmons). Prefix A/2.

Courtesy of Hartmut Fraunhoffer (Banknote-Online).

Bermuda new sig 20-dollar note variety confirmed

Bermuda_BMA_20_dollars_2009.01.01_B33b_P60_A-1_000155_f
Bermuda_BMA_20_dollars_2009.01.01_B33b_P60_A-1_000155_r
Bermuda_BMA_20_dollars_2009.01.01_B33b_P60_A-1_000155_sig
20 dollars, 1 JANUARY 2009. Like BMA B33a, but new signatures (Alan C. Cossar and L. Anthony Jaoquin), prefix A/1, and flowers and butterflies on back now green, not purple.

Courtesy of Richard Miranda.

Bermuda new signature 2-dollar note confirmed

Bermuda_BMA_2_dollars_2009.01.01_B30b_P57_A-1_000719_sig
2 dollars, 1 JANUARY 2009. Like BMA B30, but new signatures (Alan C. Cossar and E. Barclay Simmons) and prefix A/1 instead of Bermuda onion.

Courtesy of Yuri111.

Bermuda new 50-dollar note confirmed

Shortly after the unveiling of the 2009 note designs, ornithologist David Wingate complained that the 50-dollar note features a red-billed tropicbird instead of a local white-tailed tropicbird. Bermuda Montetary Authority officials apologized for the error, but said they wouldn’t change the design because they feel the red bill of the larger bird looks better against the pale yellow background than the orange of the local bird. Apparently the BMA changed its mind (or finally issued all of the notes with the incorrect bird).

Bermuda_BMA_50_D_2009.01.01_B34as_P61s_000000_f Bermuda_BMA_50_D_2009.01.01_B36as_PNLs_000000_f
Original note (left) and revised note (right)

According to a press release dated 1 August 2012, the Bermuda Montetary Authority has issued a new 50-dollar (US$50) note with an updated Longtail bird, an A/1 prefix instead of a Bermuda onion prefix, and a new signature combination (Alan C. Cossar and Gerald Simons). The new note will circulate in parallel with the preceding issue. Both are dated 1 JANUARY 2009.

Listed below are all the signatures on the new A/1 note series (although only the $50 note is in circulation to date):

$100 – Alan Cossar, Darren Johnston
$50 – Alan Cossar, Gerald Simons
$20 – Alan Cossar, Anthony Joaquin
$10 – Alan Cossar, Lynda Milligan-Whyte
$5 – Alan Cossar, Ronald Simmons
$2 – Alan Cossar, Barclay Simmons

Courtesy of Stane Straus.

Bermuda new date (07.05.2007) 20-dollar note (B226b) unconfirmed

Bermuda_BMA_20_D_2000.05.24_B25a_P53a_D-1_000865_f
Shown above, Bermuda B226a is dated 24 MAY 2000. The Bermuda Monetary Authority claims that it has also issued this denomination dated 2007. However, I'm unable to verify this note exists. If anyone can provide scans of same, it would be greatly appreciated.

Bermuda chapter of The Banknote Book is now available


The Bermuda chapter of The Banknote Book is now available for individual sale and as a free download to subscribers.

This 27-page catalog covers notes issued by the Bermuda Government from 1914 to 1970, and the Bermuda Monetary Authority from 1974 to present. Revised 25 May 2015.

Each chapter of The Banknote Book includes detailed descriptions and background information, full-color images, and accurate valuations. The Banknote Book also features:
  • Sharp color images of note’s front and back without overlap
  • Face value or date of demonetization if no longer legal tender
  • Specific identification of all vignette elements
  • Security features described in full
  • Printer imprint reproduced exactly as on note
  • Each date/signature variety assigned an individual letter
  • Variety checkboxes for tracking your collection and want list
  • Red stars highlight the many notes missing from the SCWPM
  • Date reproduced exactly as on note
  • Precise date of introduction noted when known
  • Replacement note information
  • Signature tables, often with names and terms of service
  • Background information for historical and cultural context
  • Details magnified to distinguish between note varieties
  • Bibliographic sources listed for further research

Subscribe to The Banknote Book
If you collect the entire world or a large number of countries, buying a subscription is the best deal because it's less expensive than buying chapters individually, and it entitles you to every chapter currently available as well as everything published—or revised (click here to see the Change Log)—during the term of your subscription.

Subscribe
Sign up for Email Notifications
If you would like to receive email notifications whenever a new chapter of The Banknote Book is published, please join the email list by clicking the button below.

Sign up

Bermuda 2-dollar note named IBNS Banknote of the Year


The International Bank Note Society (IBNS) has chosen Bermuda’s $2 note, issued as part of an entirely new series in 2009, as the 2010 Bank Note of the Year. Each year the IBNS recognizes an exceptional banknote issued in the previous year and, from nine very impressive nominations issued in 2009, the Bermuda $2 note was a clear winner.

The award-winning note portrays the Bermuda Bluebird (Sialia sialis) on the front and the Dockyard Clock Tower and Statue of Neptune on the back. As with all notes in the new Bermuda series, the head of HM Queen Elizabeth II appears in a reduced format on the front of the note, the portrait being a mirror of the Machin Head design which appears on the postage stamps of the Royal Mail.

The members of the IBNS Board, who chose the winning note, considered the Bermuda $2 note an example of the most attractive elements which create interest among the ever-widening community of banknote collectors and those who take an interest in the development of paper money. They said the combination of colours were appealing and blended well throughout all components of the design. Additionally, the range of items depicted on the note were attractively presented and allowed the eye to linger and to search for natural and historical design elements which were not immediately apparent.

One of the factors recommending the note to the judges was an interesting array of security features, despite its low face value. These include an Optiks™ embedded metallic thread, with an aperture on the front depicting the island; a Hibiscus watermark on the top section on the front; the Cornerstone™—a watermark feature on the four corners of the note enhancing the durability of the banknote; and, on the back, the Gemini™ feature portraying a compass which fluoresces in two colours under UV light.

Manufactured by De La Rue and released as part of a new series by the Bermuda Monetary Authority in February 2009, the series was the first major re-design of Bermudian banknotes for 40 years. The object of the series was to present depictions of Bermuda, with the series reflecting the natural beauty of the flora and fauna of the island on one side and the island’s architectural heritage on the other.

Working from a detailed brief from the Bermuda Monetary Authority, the initial concept designs for the series were created by Gene Bothwick, one of De La Rue’s long-serving designers, who retired in 2007 after 23 years of service. These concepts were then developed for production by the De La Rue banknote Preliminaries Department with input and guidance from the Monetary Authority.

The IBNS congratulates the Bermuda Monetary Authority and De La Rue on an exceptional banknote.

Bermuda new date (07.05.2007) 10-dollar note confirmed


10 dollars (US$10). Like Pick 52, but new date (7 MAY 2007) and new signatures.

Courtesy of TDS.

Bermuda new date (07.05.2007) notes confirmed


2 dollars (US$2). Like Pick 50, but new date (7 MAY 2007) and new signatures.

50 dollars (US$50), 7 MAY 2007. Like P54, but new date and new signatures (Alan F. Richardson, CHAIRMAN; Robert Steinhoff, DIRECTOR).

Both the 2- and 50-dollar notes have been seen with this new date. The Bermuda Monetary Authority recently confirmed that 10- and 20-dollar notes have also been issued dated 7 MAY 2007. If anyone has these denominations with this date, please send scans so that I can post them.

Courtesy of Ömer Yalcinkaya.

Bermuda new variety 20-dollar note dated 2000 confirmed


A new variety 20-dollar note from Bermuda has been confirmed. Pick 53a at top has a silver foil patch in the shape of an artist’s palette at lower left front, but on the new variety the foil patch has a smaller 20, and the artwork to the right includes flowers. Both notes are dated 24 MAY 2000 and have the same signature combinations, and the other security features seem to be unchanged.

Courtesy of Claudio Marana.

Bermuda issues new note series

On 20 February 2009, the Bermuda Monetary Authority (BMA) celebrated 40 years of service, and the island of Bermuda celebrated the 400th anniversary of its settlement by British explorer Sir George Somers. The BMA is marking these landmark occasions by launching the first complete redesign of Bermuda’s banknotes since the Bermuda dollar was issued in 1969. Planning for this launch commenced in 2005, and the BMA received the permission and support of the minister of finance and the cabinet for this new design in the summer of 2007. The objectives of the launch are to update the design of the Bermuda note family, the basic design of which has been in place since 1969; to provide a distinct Bermuda design, and clearly distinguish the note family from the designs of other countries; to provide a sense of national pride and easy identification with the features by the Bermudian public; to combat counterfeiting by increasing the security features; and to issue notes that are durable in the island’s tropical climate. The new banknotes were unveiled on November 24, 2008, and were introduced on March 9, 2009. Subject to the minister of finance’s approval, the BMA is also planning to issue commemorative note and coin products celebrating the 400th anniversary of Bermuda’s settlement.


2 dollars
Turquoise. Front (vertical): QEII; bluebird; flowers; butterfly; sail boats. Back (vertical): Butterflies; compass rose; dockyard clock tower; statue of Neptune. Optiks security thread. Watermark: Hibiscus flower and electrotype sail boat. Printer: TDLR (w/o imprint). 136 x 69 mm. 1 JANUARY 2009. Signatures: R. Alan F. Richardson and E. Barclay Simmons. Introduced 03.09.2009.


5 dollars
Pink. Front (vertical): QEII; blue marlin fish; flowers; dolphin. Back (vertical): Butterflies; bird of paradise flower; Horseshoe Bay beach; boat passing beneath Somerset bridge. Optiks security thread. Watermark: Hibiscus flower and electrotype sail boat. Printer: TDLR (w/o imprint). 136 x 69 mm. 1 JANUARY 2009. Signature R. Alan F. Richardson and unknown. Introduced 03.09.2009.


10 dollars
Purple. Front (vertical): QEII; blue angel fish; coral; sea turtle. Back (vertical): Anchor; butterflies; ship “The Deliverance;” cannon; Commissioner’s House building in Somerset Parish. Optiks security thread. Watermark: Hibiscus flower and electrotype sail boat. Printer: TDLR (w/o imprint). 136 x 69 mm. 1 JANUARY 2009. Signatures: R. Alan F. Richardson and Lynda Milligan-Whyte. Introduced 03.09.2009.


20 dollars
Green. Front (vertical): QEII; whistling frog; flowers; lizard. Back (vertical): Butterflies; St. Mark’s church; Gibbs Hill lighthouse in Southampton Parish. Optiks security thread. Watermark: Hibiscus flower and electrotype sail boat. Printer: TDLR (w/o imprint). 136 x 69 mm. 1 JANUARY 2009. Signatures: R. Alan F. Richardson and unknown. Introduced 03.09.2009.


50 dollars
Yellow. Front (vertical): QEII; longtail tropic bird; flowers. Back (vertical): Butterflies; St. Peter’s church in town of St. George. Optiks security thread. Watermark: Hibiscus flower and electrotype sail boat. Printer: TDLR (w/o imprint). 136 x 69 mm. 1 JANUARY 2009. Signatures: R. Alan F. Richardson and unknown. Introduced 03.09.2009.

Note: Shortly after the unveiling of the new note designs, ornithologist David Wingate complained that the $50 features a red-billed tropicbird instead of a local white-tailed tropicbird. BMA officials apologized for the error, but won’t change the design because they feel the red bill of the larger bird looks better against the pale yellow background than the orange of the local bird.


100 dollars
Red. Front (vertical): QEII; Red cardinal bird; flowers. Back (vertical): Butterflies; House of Assembly building in Hamilton; cahow bird. Optiks security thread. Watermark: Hibiscus flower and electrotype sail boat. Printer: TDLR (w/o imprint). 136 x 69 mm. 1 JANUARY 2009. Signatures: R. Alan F. Richardson and Robert Steinhoff. Introduced 03.09.2009.

Courtesy of Ömer Yalcinkaya.