About the note
Canadian artist Charles F. Comfort created the initial design approach of this bank note series, and the Canadian Bank Note Company (CBN) produced the final design with assistance from the American Bank Note Company. The face of every note carries a portrait of the young Queen Elizabeth II engraved by George Gundersen of the British American Bank Note Company (BABN) after a photograph by Yousuf Karsh. However, some people saw a shape in the curls behind the Queen’s ear that resembled the face of the Devil. CBN engraver Yves Baril modified the engraving, and from 1956 onward, no more “Devil’s Head” bank notes were issued.
The scene on the back of the note, engraved by Harry Dawson (BABN), is of Southern Quebec. The town is Richmond, in the Eastern Townships between Drummondville and Sherbrooke. The area is farming country settled in the early 19th century by families from Montréal and New England. It was an important stop along the railway route between Montréal and Portland, Maine.
At a glance
- Portrait: Queen Elizabeth II
- Date of issue: September 9, 1954 (modified: June 1956)
- Last day of issue: August 4, 1975
- Signatures:
- Deputy Governors James E. Coyne, John R. Beattie, Gerald K. Bouey and Ruston W. Lawson
- Governors Graham F. Towers, James E. Coyne, Louis Rasminsky and Gerald K. Bouey
- Dimensions: 15.2 cm x 7 cm
- Design: Charles F. Comfort, British American Bank Note Company Ltd., Canadian Bank Note Company Ltd.
- Printer: British American Bank Note Company Ltd.
- Status: not legal tender
