Virginia Currency
July 14, 1780
An emission of £2,000,000 ($6,666,666) in treasury bills redeemable in Spanish milled dollars by December 31, 1784 at the rate of $40 in paper currency for each Spanish dollar. In October 1780 these bills were given legal tender status but that was revoked in November of 1781. The bills were typeset on thin paper with the denomination printed on the side margins of the otherwise blank backs. Lower denominations from $3 1/3 $20 have two signers and lack control letters while denominations from $35 - $100 have two control letters (see May 4, 1778) and three signers. Denominations issued were: $3 1/3 (20s), $6 2/3 (£2), $10 (£3), $13 1/3 (£4), $15 (£4 10s), $20 (£6), $35 (£10 10s), $45 (£13 10s), $55 (£16 10s), $60 (£18), $80 (£24) and $100 (£30).obv
$80 Serial Number: 152 (partly obscured) control letters: b.w VA 06/15/80
Signers: J.M. Simmons, John Lyne, J. Hopkins.
Size: 70 x 95mm (ornamental design on the outside front borders is trimmed).
Comments: Numbered and signed in brown ink. Control letters are found to the left of the serial number. Equivalencies stated on the bill are £24 or $80, exchangable at a rate of one Spanish milled dollar to forty in currency. On the front of the note in the top margin the ornamental crown between "Eighty" and "Dollars" is upside down. Also the final letters "lars" in Dollars is set higher than the other letters and overlaps with the marginal ornament. In the bottom margin the phrase "Virginia Currency" is printed upside down. Both phrases are set in a gothic type. On the back near the right border is printed "Eighty Dollars" and near the left border "Twenty Four Pounds" which is partly obscured by tape in this example. The remainder of the back is unprinted. Click here to view the back.
Provenance: Purchased through the Robert H. Gore, Jr. Numismatic Endowment from the EANA mail bid auction of 04/20/96, lot 612.
