National Bank of Egypt, obverse (2) and reverse archival photos showing designs for £1, 3 January 1926, black and white, portrait of Charles I of England at right, Pharaoh in watermark at left, value at centre and corners, reverse, building and well at centre(Pick 20 for similar), at first glance this is one of the more amusing items in the group. Those familiar with British history will recognise the portrait as Charles I. His presence on an Egyptian note simply shows that the designers were awaiting confirmation of who was to feature on the latest design. Charles was used as a placeholder on designs for several countries during this period. Eventually the Fellah was chosen for this series, but The tomb of Pharaoh Tutankhamen was discovered in 1922 and evidently it was judged significant enough that a vignette of his golden mask was used on the series of 1930. The presence of Charles I on these designs does suggest that there was some debate about this choice even as early as 1926 (3).
Estimate: £1,000.00 - £1,200.00