20 shillings 1973

Common. The 1973 20 shillings Uganda note is a standard circulation issue with no documented scarcity. eBay market data confirms abundant availability across all condition grades, with UNC examples regularly selling in the $5-$18 range over a 12+ year period, indicating steady market supply and consistent collector demand at low valuations. The 2019 catalog value of $7.50 for UNC is modest and typical of common post-colonial African banknotes.

This 1973 issue was released during a politically turbulent period in Uganda's post-independence era. The obverse portrait depicts a high-ranking military officer in full dress uniform with decorative regalia, reflecting the military governance that characterized Uganda at the time. The reverse features the Bank of Uganda's institutional building in Kampala rendered in modernist style, symbolizing the nation's attempts to establish financial and administrative stability through newly constructed institutional architecture.

The obverse features a prominent military officer in parade dress uniform positioned at the left, wearing a peaked military cap with insignia and displaying decorative chest medals and shoulder insignia, representing Uganda's military leadership. The central design employs an ornamental oval frame containing the large denomination numeral '20' with leaf-like decorative patterns. The Ugandan coat of arms appears in the lower right corner. A circular decorative emblem in pink and green tones adorns the upper right. The reverse showcases a significant modernist institutional building with regular gridded window patterns and a characteristic flat overhang roof—identified as the Bank of Uganda headquarters in Kampala. Two heraldic antelope or gazelle figures (representing Uganda's fauna and national symbolism) flank the building at bottom. Decorative rosette designs appear in the corners. Bilingual inscriptions (English and Swahili/Bantu languages) reflect Uganda's post-colonial identity.

FRONT: 'BANK OF UGANDA' (English) - Bank of Uganda; 'TWENTY SHILLINGS' (English) - denomination in English; 'SHILINGI ISHIRINI' (Swahili/Bantu) - denomination in local language; 'LEGAL TENDER FOR TWENTY SHILLINGS' (English) - legal tender declaration; 'FOR BANK OF UGANDA' (English) - issuer attribution; 'GOVERNOR' and 'SECRETARY' (English) - signature titles; Serial number 'B 6971155'. BACK: 'BANK OF UGANDA' (English) - issuer name; 'TWENTY SHILLINGS SHILINGI ISHIRINI' (English/Swahili) - bilingual denomination statement; Denomination '20' repeated in corners.

Intaglio engraving with sophisticated security features including elaborate guilloche patterns throughout the background, fine-line microprint patterns in decorative borders, and intricate geometric patterns in border designs. The high-quality engraving with sharp detail reproduction and color saturation is consistent with Bank of Uganda notes produced by established security printers during this period. The multicolor underprint technique visible in the visual analysis supports professional security printer production standards.

This specimen is cataloged as Pick P-7c, part of a three-variant series for the 1973 20 shillings denomination (P-7a, P-7b, P-7c). Serial number prefix 'B' indicates this is a regular issue note; replacement notes are identified by prefixes Z/1, Y/1, X/1, and W/1 on the 5/ and 10/ denominations respectively. The watermark features the crested crane (Uganda's national bird and symbol). Signature titles of GOVERNOR and SECRETARY are present. No overprints are evident on this example.