The Bank of Scotland has unveiled (7th November) the modified design which will be included on their latest £20 banknote. In keeping with the specifications of circulation banknotes, which are taken from Bank of England banknotes, the new £20 banknotes will be printed on polymer and will also be reduced in their dimensions.
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The back design of the Bank of Scotland’s latest £20 note will continue to feature the Forth Bridge. The distinctive red Forth Bridge, a cantilever railway bridge crossing the Firth of Forth which is located nine miles west of the city of Edinburgh, was listed as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in July 2015. Considered one of the finest symbols of industrial Scotland, it was designed by the English engineers Sir John Fowler and Sir Benjamin Baker, with construction commencing in 1882. The Forth Bridge has a length of 8,094 feet (2467 metres) and double tracks elevated to 150 feet (45.72) metres above the water level at high tide.
The face side includes the date 1st June 2019 and also continues to feature prominent Scottish novelist and poet Sir Walter Scott (1771–1832). Remembered as a Scottish historical novelist, poet, playwright, and historian, many of his works remain classics of both English-language literature and Scottish literature. Alongside Scott’s image is the image of the Mound, a man-made slope in central Edinburgh which connects Edinburgh’s New and Old Towns. The building depicted is the elegant domed headquarters of the Bank of Scotland, located on the Mound.
The size of the new banknote will measure at 139 by 73 millimetres and includes updated security features incorporated into the note and as part of the transition from paper to polymer.
One of the new security features is the anti-counterfeit “window effect” which can be found in the windows of the Mound. An image of the bank’s headquarters is visible on both sides, allowing the windows to be perfectly aligned and see-through.
The 20-pound polymer banknotes include a holographic elongated vertical window with a northern lights effect shown towards the top when tilted. Additionally, the clouds adjacent to the allegorical statue will move left to right when tilted east to west.
£20 Commemorative Banknote Also Unveiled
As part of the unveiling for the £20 design carrying the image of the Forth Bridge, the Bank of Scotland announced the release of a commemorative banknote of the same denomination which will include a depiction of the Queensferry Crossing. A model of modern construction and engineering, the Queensferry Crossing is built alongside the existing Forth Road Bridge and is part of the UK’s M90 motorway which crosses the Firth of Forth between Edinburgh, at South Queensferry, and Fife, at North Queensferry.
The Bank of England announced the £20 polymer banknotes would be released on the 20th February 2020, and it is expected that the Bank of Scotland will begin the issue of their own polymer notes — both ordinary and commemorative versions shortly after that date. The Bank of Scotland has been issuing sterling equivalent value banknotes for over 320 years. As a commercial institute, their notes are circulated along with the banknotes of the Clydesdale Bank and Royal Bank of Scotland. Bank of England banknotes are also widely used. All previously issued Bank of Scotland banknotes can be redeemed for current banknotes at their head offices. For additional information about Bank of Scotland banknotes, please visit the website of the Committee of Scottish Bankers.
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