Notaphilyc Culture

1935 Bank of Canada

1935

Unlike all successive series, the printers chose blue ink for the TWO/DEUX Dollar denomination and an orange tint for the FIVE/CINQ DOLLARS. This departure from convention confused the Canadian public since blue was typical of higher denominations (such as $5) and orange/brown hues were typically employed on most Dominion lower denominations (the $2). In addition, the $5 features Prince Edward (the Prince of Wales) who later abdicated to marry Wallis Simpson. The pink $20 note was briefly printed with a LARGE seal featuring the future Queen Elizabeth as a child. The short-lived $25 note commemorated the Silver Jubilee of King George V's reign. Everything about this short lived series is appealing to most collectors of paper money so world demand far outpaces Canadian's ability to obtain them.

Most serious collectors of Canadian paper money will want to have a few examples of this iconic tough Bank of Canada debut series (which launched at the end to the Chartered banks monopoly in printing CDN paper money). However, what one discovers is that many collectible examples have been bought up by US dealers and original examples are priced well-above Charlton's BV.

All notes bear the signatures of the Bank of Canada's (BoC) first Governor: G F Towers and Deputy Governor: J. A. C. Osborne.

Series & Denominations:

BC-1 /P-38 One Dollar & BC-2/P-39 Un Dollar:

All prefixes (Series A & B) are popular with BOC's first English One Dollar banknote. Canadians know this series is accessible so they're quite popular with dabblers & there does exist a slight preference for the lower runs of Series B over Series A. However, many serious collectors try to obtain the tougher French Un Dollar banknote (printed in French & with "F" prefix) since these are the scarcest in high grades (15M issued compared to 60M of the English varieties).

BC-3/P-40 Two Dollars & BC-4/P-41 Deux Dollars:

The English Two Dollars (Series A, with 22M printed) featuring Queen Mary is very popular and fairly easy to obtain in mid to higher grades. I believe that the healthy BV is due more to popularity than scarcity. The Deux Dollars, with only 5M printed is a much tougher note to obtain (& always demands higher MV which typically outpaces BV). The notes were printed in French & with "F" prefix like the UN Dollar (see images below). The same principal for the Deux Dollars can be observed for higher denominations but the higher denominations are even scarcer.

BC-5/P-42 Five Dollars & BC-6/P-43Cinq Dollars:

The English Five Dollars (@ 6M) and the Cinq Dollars (@ 3M) are quite tough in original high grade. I find low grade Fives fairly easy to come by so often their BV is higher than their FMV. These banknotes feature the Prince of Wales before he abdicated & I believe that is one of their selling features (for novelty sake). Check a Charlton Catalogue for more information on this denomination.

BC-7/P-44 Ten Dollars & BC-8/P-45 Dix Dollars:

Ten Dollars, featuring Princess Mary, have slightly fewer printed (@ 5M) but the Dix Dollars (@ 1.5M) doesn't get the respect it deserves. I have rarely seen the French version in higher grades offered & most sellers throw the book out when listing these.

BC-9/P-46a-b Twenty Dollars & BC-10/P-47 Vingt Dollars:

The Twenty Dollars features a young QEII and is often dubbed the "Shirley Temple" note for her striking resemblance to the famous young actress. Only 0.2M of (Charlton's BC-9a/P-46a Large Seal) were printed while a paltry 0.8M of the Small seal (Charlton's BC-9b/P46b) were issued. One seldom sees the Vingt Dollars (@ 0.2M) in anything but circulated grades so their BV never keeps pace with FMV. Buying one of these in high grades would be labelled an auctioning event! See the examples of Large vs Small seal below.

BC-11/P-48 Twenty Five & BC-12/P-49 Vingt Cinq Dollars (BOC first Commemorative):

The Twenty Five/Vingt Cinq Commemorative banknote (@ 0.14M & 0.02M respectively) are considered "Trophy notes" and extremely scarce in any grade. These notes are the only ones to feature Queen Mary & King George (& Windsor Castle on the reverse). Rarely do we see these notes come to auction & their price just keeps climbing. But, on the downside, they can also be a tough sell, since pricing tends to be so high for even the most circulated examples.

BC-13/P-50 Fifty Dollars & BC-14/P-51 Cinquante Dollars:

The appeal is of the Fifty Dollars (@ 0.13M) and the Cinquante Dollars (@0.032M) is that they are scarce and feature the future King George the VI (Prince Albert at the time). The radio allegory on the reverse is often a draw too. They seldom come to auction & FMV always outstrips BV.

BC-15/P-52 One Hundred Dollars & BC-16/P-53 Cent Dollars:

Likewise trends can be observed for the One Hundred (@ 0.087) & the Cent Dollars (@ 0.017M) which both had brief printing/releases (especially for a One Hundred note). Commerce & Industry is the allegory featured on the reverse and the note features Prince Henry.

BC-17/P-54 Five Hundred & BC-18/P-55 Cinq Cents Dollars:

The Five Hundred (@ 0.02M) or Cinq Cents (@0.005M) were typically employed for bank transfers (like the $1000) and few people ever saw these denominations. Today, they're only in a few private collections or are occasionally seen as specimens or printer's proofs. It is the first time we see John A Macdonald's portrait (which eventually lands on the 1937 $100 denomination).

BC-19/P-56 One Thousand & BC-20/P-57 Mille Dollars:

Last, but by no means least, collectors have a much better chance to acquire the One Thousand (@ 0.066M) or Mille Dollars (@ 0.007M) rather than the $500 or $25. Although primarily intended for use between businesses the English version does come up for auction almost routinely. It features Sir Wilfrid Laurier and is printed in an olive green with "Protection" as the reverse allegory.

REFERENCES:

In order to really get a clear grasp of what is what in Dominion or Bank of Canada currency, no reference can shine a light to Charlton Standard Catalogue: Canadian Government Paper Money. If you really want to collect specific note & series than I urge you to pick up a copy. Charlton lists the English One as BC-1 & the French version, Un Dollar as BC-2; English Two as BC-3 & the Deux as BC-4 & so on until the French (Mille) $1000 which is BC-20. Thus, the English are typically odd numbers while the French versions are EVEN #. IMO: this catalogue gives you detailed stats & much better info which justifies (or negates) some of the inflated BV (Book Values) you'll see in the SCWPM below. The SCWPM (Standard Catalogue of World Paper Money or "Pick") uses the "P" (for Pick) so that the English $1 is P-38; The French $1 is P-39, etc.