Description and research notes
Issued 1 Pound note from Fiji under British colonial administration, created by overprinting an existing New Zealand Reserve Bank £1 note dated 1 August 1934. Printed originally by Thomas De La Rue and later overprinted locally for emergency use during the Second World War, this note represents one of the Pacific region's most historically charged wartime issues.
When Japan's expansion into the Pacific cut off routine currency shipments from London in 1942, the British administration in Fiji faced an acute shortage of legal tender. The immediate solution was to adapt existing New Zealand notes by applying a bold black overprint reading 'GOVERNMENT OF FIJI / £1 ONE POUND £1 / THIS NOTE IS LEGAL TENDER IN FIJI ONLY'. This allowed the notes to circulate locally while distinguishing them from regular New Zealand issues still valid in New Zealand.
The underlying design retains all the original features of the Reserve Bank of New Zealand £1 note — the kiwi bird vignette, New Zealand coat of arms, and the portrait of Maori King Tawhiao. The Fijian overprint created a distinct wartime hybrid, combining colonial necessity with established Commonwealth design.
Educational context: Overprinted issues like this illustrate the vulnerability of remote colonial economies during global conflict and the improvisation required to maintain monetary stability. For students of Pacific numismatics, these notes offer insight into wartime logistics, interbank cooperation, and British colonial monetary policy.
PMG 20 Very Fine, with fully legible overprint and visible red serial FI/O 131408. Surviving examples are scarce, as most circulated heavily during the war and were withdrawn soon after 1943 when dedicated Fijian currency was introduced.