10 yuan 1941
Market Prices
About This Note
This is a 1941 Bank of Communications 10 yuan note in UNC condition, featuring a striking engraved design with a steam locomotive prominently displayed on the obverse. The note exhibits the characteristic brown and multicolor palette of Chinese wartime currency, with ornate rosette designs and fine geometric border work typical of Dah Tung Book's printing. Despite some red processing marks and stamps visible from handling or archival marking, the note remains well-preserved with excellent detail retention, representing a desirable example of this transportation-themed issue.
Common. Despite the catalog value of $15 UNC (2016), current eBay market data shows UNC examples trading consistently in the $29.99 to $88.88 range with multiple listings, indicating healthy market liquidity and regular availability. The print run for this 1941 issue was substantial, and the note has not been recalled or withdrawn from circulation in a manner that would create scarcity. The variant P-159h appears in standard catalogs without special rarity notations.
Issued during 1941 in the Republic of China period, this banknote reflects the era of Japanese occupation and the Chinese nationalist government's continued financial operations. The Bank of Communications was a major Chinese financial institution, and the prominence of the steam locomotive on the design symbolizes the importance of modern transportation infrastructure and industrial progress to the nation during this turbulent period. The use of English alongside Chinese inscriptions underscores the international commercial orientation of Chinese banking in the pre-1949 era.
The obverse features a horizontally-oriented composition divided between a decorative ornamental rosette cartouche on the left containing Chinese characters, and an engraved landscape vignette on the right depicting a modern steam locomotive on railroad tracks with mountainous terrain in the background, flanked by telegraph or power line poles. The entire design is framed by ornate geometric borders with corner flourishes characteristic of early 20th-century bank note engraving. The reverse presents a formal denomination design with corner rosettes each containing the numeral '10', a central ornamental cartouche displaying 'TEN' and '拾元', and the English identification 'BANK OF COMMUNICATIONS' prominently displayed at the top. Both sides employ fine line engraving work throughout the borders and decorative elements.
Front side: '中華民國' (Republic of China), '行銀通交' (Bank of Communications, read in reversed order), '圓拾' (Ten yuan), 'N543303' (Serial number in red). Back side: 'BANK OF COMMUNICATIONS' (English), '10' (Denomination in corners), 'TEN' (English denomination), '拾元' (Chinese: Ten yuan), 'TEN YUAN' (English), 'N543303' (Serial number repeated left and right in red), 'DAH TUNG BOOK CO. LTD.' (Printer's attribution).
Intaglio engraving (line engraving) produced by Dah Tung Book Co. Ltd. (DTBC), a Shanghai-based security printer. The fine detail work visible throughout the design—particularly in the border patterns, rosette elements, and locomotive vignette—is characteristic of high-quality intaglio production. The red serial numbers and stamps appear to be applied via overprint, consistent with standard currency production practices of the era.
This note is cataloged as Pick P-159h, one of three known variants for the base Pick number 159 (variants P-159f, P-159g, and P-159s also exist). All variants listed were printed by Dah Tung Book Co. Ltd. (DTBC). The specific variety P-159h can be distinguished by its particular printing characteristics, though detailed differentiation between P-159f, P-159g, and P-159h would require comparison with reference examples. The serial number 'N543303' observed on this specimen is consistent with the standard serial numbering scheme applied in red ink to both obverse and reverse.
