Bank of Canada $20 Essay (Bradbury Wilkinson)

News: Welcome to the Canadian Paper Money Forum.

Bank of Canada, original, hand drawn design essay for the face of a $20 note, the art work done at Bradbury Wilkinson (England), possibly by Derek Friday, on card and measuring 7.1cms x 15.4cms.  The design is mounted on blue backing card complete with two pseudo signatures, and serial number AB1234567.

Also, face and reverse photographs showing Bradbury Wilkinson designs for a 20 Dollars note, mounted to a paper backing sheet.

Wow, canada-banknotes!

These are very interesting essays and add to our story about Canadian bank note design.  Your images have many elements that we see in the $20 notes that entered circulation in ~1969.

I recall a blog post on the Bank of Canada Museum’s blog (The Museum Blog) about the competition between printers worldwide to design the $20 multicolour note.  I appreciate the work that our Bank does in providing insight to our bank note history.

The museum blog post on October 21, 2021 focuses on designing the 1969 multicolour issue $20.  It explains how the process began in 1963 with a worldwide competition request for proposals. The blog shows other submissions that were not chosen – what a variety!  Eventually these notes were designed by De La Rue and the image of their “Design X III” shown is fairly similar to your post here on CPMF.

I’m not clear how the connection between design by Bradbury Wilkinson & Company and a proposal by De La Rue occurred.  Any insight would be appreciated.

JBN

There is some similarity between the Thomas de la Rue Design X III (see attached) and the Bradbury Wilkinson $20 essay.

In 1903, Bradbury Wilkinson and Company was acquired by the American Bank Note Company.  In 1917, it moved to New Malden in Surrey still operating as Bradbury-Wilkinson as a wholly owned subsidiary of ABNC.  Coincidentally in 1986 Bradbury-Wilkinson was acquired by De La Rue but that was long after the design of the 1969 Bank of Canada $20 note was finalized.

The $20 essay that I posted is from the Estate of Derek Friday.  Mr. Friday was an artist who in the 1950s left the RAF and began as an apprentice in the design department of Bradbury Wilkinson working there for almost 30 years hand drawing and painting the designs for banknotes, share certificates and debentures.

Here is a link to the October 2021 Bank of Canada Currency Museum Blog you mentioned:

https://www.bankofcanadamuseum.ca/2021/10/moving-mountains/

These are very interesting essays and add to our story about Canadian bank note design.  Your images have many elements that we see in the $20 notes that entered circulation in ~1969.

What makes this essay most impressive is that the banknote design is totally hand drawn.

I have added some high resolution images that show the detail more clearly.

I admire the ability of these artisans to take an idea and create something by hand.  Artists and engravers demonstrated skills that are beautiful to look at, and collect.  Of course, modern tools are more a digital variety; however the talent is still necessary.

A few years ago I was able to look at an essay sketch drawn with pencil of The Canadian Bank of Commerce 1917 issue $10 or $20 (cannot remember which one).  This was part of early stage development material leading to the bank notes that we collectors find today.  I’m sure that sketch is unique – as is this Bank of Canada $20 essay.

I have been lucky to obtain many vignettes used on Dominion government notes as well as some early banks in Canada.  It is impressive to see vignettes in different stages of completion.  Engravers sometimes created similar vignettes using the same foreground and changing the background for example.  In others, a small detail would be changed such as a dragon's tail curling right instead of left.

This is a part of our hobby that (thankfully!) doesn’t draw too much attention of $$$.

JBN