50 Dollar Orchid Banknotes - Prefix A/15 to A/22 by Dr. Goh Keng Swee

I have been collecting orchid banknotes for some time and have tried to make a full set of his prefixes in the Orchid Banknotes Series. I think that I have completed his prefixes for the Orchid 50 Dollar Bank note, i.e A/15 to A/22, if there are anyone who thinks that I may have left out any prefix, please email me and let me know!

Hobby of Banknotes Collection in The Business Times

Recently I conversed with a journalist of The Business Times who intended to run a story on Dr. Goh Keng Swee notes and the banknote collecting hobby. The story ran on May 20, 2010. And yes, I am the mentioned Mr. Toh in the story, haha. I am also selling some of my Orchid 50 Dollars by Dr. Goh in the previous post, you can email me if interested. They are going for very good prices starting from SGD 100 for an about EF note.

'Dr Goh Keng Swee notes are always sought after in the numismatic community in Singapore as his signed variety is rarer compared to the other signed varieties by Mr Hon Sui Sen and Mr Lim Kim San (for the 'Orchid' series),' said another collector, who gave his name as Mr Toh.

'I have more enquiries on Dr Goh signed banknotes this week and have sold quite a number of them,' he said.

'Non-collectors would be interested in getting their hands on a note to own to remember Dr Goh's contribution to Singapore history as the finance minister,' added Mr Toh, who runs a numismatic blog.

He said that the $1 'Orchid' notes in uncirculated condition, that is, those that have not yellowed or do not show any sign of use, are going for around $15-20.

The 'Orchid' series of banknotes was the first set of Singapore currency after independence, and was issued in 1967. There have been three other series of banknotes since: 'Bird' (1976), 'Ship' (1984) and 'Portrait' (1999).

(The Business Times, Singapore)

For the full story: Click Here

Singapore Orchid Series 50 Dollars - Dr. Goh Keng Swee

I have a couple of Singapore Orchid 50 Dollars signed by Dr. Goh Keng Swee for sale. Notes signed by Dr. Goh are the rarest amongst all orchid notes and commands a good resale value.

The condition ranges from extra fine to uncirculated. Prices are 100 - 150 SGD for an extra fine note. My price is low as compared to others and of higher quality. If interested, please email me at sgbanknotes@ymail.com . Thank you.

For more information about grading terms, check out the grading tab.

The above note is going for SGD 110. Condition is EF in my opinion.

Hong Kong Fancy Number 20 Dollars

Singapore is not the only country with a lionhead as a watermark. Hong Kong, an ex british colony which is similar to size and economy, also had lionhead watermarks for their banknotes. I have bought this pair of beautiful 1989 and 1990 Hong Kong 20 dollars, in different colours with the same design. They also bear the same fancy serial number of 666646. It is not easy to find notes with fancy serial number, and even harder to find a pair in different colour and with the same fancy serial and design.

Passing of a Titan - Dr. Goh Keng Swee

Former Deputy Prime Minister and Singapore's economic architect Goh Keng Swee died early on Friday morning after a long illness. He was 91.

Dr Goh Keng Swee will be remembered, above all, for his role as one of the prime architects of Singapore's economic success. Many of the key milestones in Singapore's journey from Third World backwater to globalised, First-World city. The late Dr Goh had seen the country through self government, survival, and hard-earned success. And as the architect of modern economic Singapore - he had laid the foundation for much of what now exists in Singapore

"At first I had no initial vision. You just start it and hope for the best. If you've a vision, that means you're a dreamer. I'm not a dreamer," said the late Dr Goh.

(Straits Times, CNA)

Dr. Gohs' set of banknotes during his tenure as the Finance Minster. The most beautiful set of Singapore banknotes which marked the humbles beginning of our nation. Dr. Gohs' variety of Orchid Banknotes also fetches the highest premium out of all printed Singapore Banknotes.

Brunei Old 10 Dollars, 1967 & 1981

Since Brunei notes are also used in Singapore, I have collected a few notes for display. Brunei notes are more expensive than our Singapore counterparts as their supply is lesser than Singapore notes.

Nice Number Singapore Orchid Series 1 Dollar

4 Consecutive Uncirculated Singapore Orchid Series 25 Dollars

Singapore Orchid 25 dollars is one of the orchid notes that fetches the highest premium over face value as its issue is only until A/50 prefix. Due to the limited supply, notes in consecutive serial numbers are also quite rare. Shown in this post is a set of 4 x 25 dollars in running serial.

Brunei 25 Dollars Commemorative note

Brunei is a country located on the north coast of the island of Borneo, in Southeast Asia. Apart from its coastline with the South China Sea it is completely surrounded by the state of Sarawak, Malaysia. Singaporeans who have enlisted into army for National Service would definitely have heard of this country.

One thing interesting is that the Brunei dollar is managed together with the Singapore dollar at a 1:1 ratio. Therefore, in Singapore, sometimes we may find Brunei Banknotes being circulated around. For a holiday in Brunei, there is also no need to exchange our Singapore notes for Brunei notes. This is similar to the Bahamas' unit of currency is the Bahamian dollar ($B) which is based on the U.S. dollar.

$25 - purple and beige (1992)

This was issued during the silver jubilee (25th anniversary) of HM Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah acceding to the throne. The design is of the 1989 series of currency.

Do not laminate your notes!

Recently I have met up with several people wanting to sell their old banknotes to me, but their banknotes were all laminated. It is a pity as the banknotes were of very good condition before they were laminated and sent to their tomb. Laminated notes lose all of their numismatic value and the banknote would be considered mutilated. Trying to even spend the face value of the note would also be hard as no one would accept such a note. This laminated note may also be considered a mutilated note. According to the Currency Act,

"The circumstances in which, and the conditions and limitations subject to which the value of mutilated currency notes or coins, or notes or coins which have been illegally dealt with, may be refunded as an act of grace shall be in the absolute discretion of the Authority. "

Therefore, do not laminate your notes or buy any laminated notes.

However, lamination is different from sealing a note in a plastic pouch. Some collectors prefer to seal their notes in a plastic pouch, and the note can still be freed from the pouch. This is ok, but lamination is not as the note can never revert back to its paper form without risking damage to it.

American Silver Certificates

The United States one-dollar bill ($1) is the most common denomination of US currency. The first president, George Washington, painted by Gilbert Stuart, is currently featured on the obverse, while the Great Seal of the United States is featured on the reverse. Everyone is very familiar with the current 1 dollar bill.

But there is actually a very similar note in silver colour called the silver certificate. It looks classier than the current note.

Another place called Singapore (in USA)

I was researching on Singapore Banknotes when I found this interesting website. This website shows me a very foreign looking Singapore banknote, and on further inspection, the banknote is not from our Singapore, it is actually from a small town in USA, Michigan. It is very interesting that 2 entirely different places, with different culture and people, had once shared the same name.

Quoted from Wikipedia.org,

"Singapore, perhaps Michigan's most famous ghost town, is one of the casualties of the four great fires (Chicago, Holland, Peshtigo, and Manistee) that ravaged the northern midwest on 8 October 1871.[1] Its ruins now lie buried beneath the sand dunes of the Lake Michigan shoreline at the mouth of the Kalamazoo River near the cities of Saugatuck and Douglas."

Links:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Singapore,_Michigan
http://singaporemichigan.com/

Singapore Orchid 5 Dollars Variety - Part 2

In this post, I will attach the images of the Dr. Goh Keng Swee and Mr. Lim Kim San variety.

Singapore Orchid 5 Dollars Variety

As mentioned in the orchid notes section, there are mainly 4 kind of varieties for Orchid notes, namely signed by Mr. Lim Kim San, Dr. Goh Keng Swee, Dr. Hon Sui Sen (with and without seal). In this post I will show you the difference between a Dr. Hon Sui Sen with seal note and the one without seal. The one without a seal is not an error note, do not believe anyone who tries to peddle it as an error note to you. It is released as the 3rd variety, but its amount released is fairly little, thus the value of the note is the 2nd highest out of the 4 varieties. This HSS without seal note is slightly shifted up, which makes it unique. For more more pictures of the orchid notes, please click on the Orchid notes link in the navigation toolbar.

Singapore Bird Series 500 Dollars Banknote

The Singapore Bird series $500 banknotes measures 181 mm x 84 mm. Its colour theme is green, with a Black-naped Oriole on the front, and Jurong Island on the reverse. This note is a first prefix (A/1) note.

Singapore Bird 100 Dollars Banknotes

The Singapore Bird $100 measures 165 mm x 78 mm. The front of the note has a drawing of a Blue Blue-throated Bee-eater and on the reverse are dancers of various ethnic groups. By chance, I collected this 4 pieces 100 dollars in uncirculated running numbers. Even though the bird 100 is still fairly common, its not easy to find them in such pristine condition with running numbers.