Banknotes & History: Ireland 1964

Описание: Today I'm looking at a 1 pound note issued in Ireland in 1964. It's got some beautiful imagery that carries a great deal of symbolism and history. Ireland is personified on this note by Lady Hazel Lavery, who was actually American by birth. She was of Irish descent and she married the Irish painter Sir John Lavery. When he was commissioned to paint the representation of Ireland for the banknote series in 1928, he chose his wife as the model. She came to be the very image of Ireland and her portrait remained on Irish banknotes in some form until the introduction of the Euro in 2002.

A banknote always tells a story from a particular point of view, attempting to unite its users and inspire faith and confidence in the country and its banking system. Currency only works when users will accept it in exchange and have faith that other users will do the same. It also needs to be difficult to copy so as to discourage counterfeit, and the security measures embedded within a note are always interesting to examine.

Note Nook is researched and presented by me, W.B. Hafford, archaeologist and economic anthropologist. It is a sub-set of a more conceptual series of money lectures, called Money Talks. The banknotes featured come from my personal collection and many are heavily worn. But circulation of a note means it has fulfilled its purpose, and wear patterns can tell us a great deal. Pristine notes may be valuable for most collectors, but for an anthropologist interested in usage and history, somewhat worn notes are often more interesting.

Supplementary imagery in the history time portion is drawn from Wikimedia Commons under Creative Commons license.