About the note
The image of the Queen on this bank note was engraved by George Gundersen of the British American Bank Note Company (BABN) after a photograph by Anthony Buckley, then‑photographer for the Royal Family.
This was the first note of this series to be produced. At the time, the plan was to present pristine landscapes on the reverse of every note. This is the only note that followed this plan; the rest of the notes’ vignettes show substantial human activity. The scene is Moraine Lake in the Valley of the Ten Peaks in Banff National Park, Alberta. It was originally engraved by Allan Carswell of the Canadian Bank Note Company, but the mountains appeared unnatural. This was believed to be due to the poor quality of the source photo—a scissors‑and‑tape assembly of several images. A single, satisfactory image was obtained from the Canadian Pacific Railway and then engraved by George Gundersen of BABN. The note was reissued in 1978 with a modified tint to better differentiate it from the $1 bill. At this time, the serial numbers were moved to the back for machine reading.
At a glance
- Portrait: Queen Elizabeth II
- Date of issue: June 22, 1970 (modified: December 17, 1978)
- Last day of issue: December 18, 1978 (modified: June 28, 1993)
- Signatures:
- Deputy Governors John R. Beattie, Ruston W. Lawson, John W. Crow and Gordon G. Thiessen
- Governors Louis Rasminsky, Gerald K. Bouey and John W. Crow
- Dimensions: 15.2 cm x 7 cm
- Design: Thomas De La Rue Company Ltd.
- Printer: Canadian Bank Note Company Ltd., British American Bank Note Company Ltd.
- Status: legal tender
