1933-36 Riddle/Sheehan Legal Tender Series Complete 4-Note Set about Uncirculated

Excessively rare in about Uncirculated quality!

We are delighted to present the Complete 1933 Riddle/Sheehan Legal Tender Series 4-Note Set – the very last banknotes of the reign of King George V. Representing a major landmark in Australian currency history, these key notes are extraordinarily rare in about Uncirculated quality – as here.

The worst economic decline of the 20th century, the Great Depression began in late 1929 with the Wall Street Crash. The impact on Australia was immense, with plunging incomes and profits, a huge decline in GDP, record unemployment and widespread poverty. A further consequence was the ultimate abandonment of the treasured Gold Standard, which took place in 1931.

A key measure in the fight against the economic turmoil created by the Great Depression, the rejection of the Gold Standard also meant that Australian banknotes were no longer backed by and freely convertible into gold. With the value of every note now officially backed by the Commonwealth Government, Australia’s banknotes were described as ‘Legal Tender’. The first issue of the ‘Legal Tender’ Series was also the final numismatic legacy of King George V.

Unveiled in 1933-34, the first Legal Tender Series issue comprised the 10/-, £1, £5 and £10 notes. Varying from their ‘Gold Payable’ predecessors in size, colour and wording, the Legal Tender notes carried the facing portrait of King George V on the right and side of the obverse. Each note also carried a watermark of Edward, Prince of Wales, soon to become King Edward VIII – one of the few occasions when the portrait of the reluctant monarch was used on official currency.

Printed in limited numbers, the 1933 Riddle/Sheehan Legal Tender notes are excessively rare in the upper echelons of quality – particularly the £5 and £10. With the weekly wage being around £5 in the mid-1930s, high denomination notes represented too much spending power to casually set aside as a keepsake. As a result, the complete set of four is seldom seen on the market in the spectacular state of preservation available here. Indeed, so rare are these notes that it is extremely difficult to assemble the complete set in ANY grade!

A rarity of the highest order in about Uncirculated quality, the Complete 1933 Riddle/Sheehan Legal Tender Series 4-Note Set will take any collection to a new level.