1 Dollar CAN Banknote (1969-1975 Issue) 1973

1 Dollar Canadian Dollar (Issued 1973)

Canada’s one dollar note of the 1969–1975 series stands as an emblem of mid-twentieth-century national identity, uniting the monarchy, the machinery of government, and the country’s working waterways on a single piece of paper currency. At the time of issue, the Canadian dollar was the everyday note most frequently handled by ordinary Canadians, making its imagery — the sovereign’s portrait, the national coat of arms, and the Parliament Buildings rising above the Ottawa River — a constant and quietly patriotic presence in daily life. The bilingual inscriptions across both faces reflected Canada’s constitutional commitment to its two official languages, French and English, and the note served as a pocket-sized declaration of that dual heritage. Produced in 1973 during a period of steady post-war prosperity, this note captures an era when Canada’s resource industries and parliamentary institutions were both central to the national self-image.

On the front, the dominant feature to the right of centre is a finely engraved portrait of Queen Elizabeth II, rendered in a three-quarter facing pose with her hair styled and a pearl necklace clearly visible at her neckline. The engraving is executed with exceptional cross-hatching and fine-line detail, giving the portrait strong tonal depth and a sculptural quality characteristic of intaglio printing. The background surrounding the portrait is composed of densely woven guilloché scrollwork in olive-green and yellow tones, with subtle geometric lathe-work patterns extending across the full width of the note. To the left of centre sits the Canadian coat of arms, engraved in careful detail and depicting the shield with its quartered emblems, supported by the lion and the unicorn, with the motto ribbon beneath. The words “UN” and “ONE” appear in bold bilingual typography above the large central denomination text “DOLLAR,” with “CANADA” printed in prominent capital letters beneath, all set against the intricate background pattern. The issuing authority is declared along the very top of the note in bilingual form: “BANK OF CANADA — BANQUE DU CANADA,” printed in clean serif capitals. The serial number FH2346839 appears twice — once to the upper left and once to the upper right — printed in red ink, providing an immediate visual security reference. A legal tender declaration runs horizontally across the lower central portion of the note, reading “THIS NOTE IS LEGAL TENDER — CE BILLET A COURS LÉGAL,” again reflecting the note’s bilingual character. Two facsimile signatures of Bank of Canada officials appear in the lower register, with the printed titles “DEPUTY GOVERNOR” and “GOVERNOR” visible beneath them, along with the Ottawa issuance notation and the year 1973.

The reverse is printed predominantly in rich olive-green ink throughout, creating a tonal consistency that lends the note a composed, authoritative appearance. The central vignette is a sweeping and highly detailed engraved landscape depicting the Parliament Buildings of Canada in Ottawa, their Gothic Revival towers and the distinctive Peace Tower rising above a dense treeline on Parliament Hill. The scene is viewed from the Ottawa River, and in the foreground two flat-bottomed vessels or barges are visible on the water, surrounded by what appears to be floating timber or ice floe patterns etched in fine parallel lines, suggesting the river’s working industrial character at the time. The skyline of Parliament Hill is engraved with remarkable precision, the spires and rooflines silhouetted against a lightly hatched sky rendered in the same olive-green palette. To the far left and right of the central image are symmetrical circular guilloché rosette patterns containing the numeral “1,” with “ONE” printed vertically on the left side and “UN” vertically on the right. The bilingual bank name “BANQUE DU CANADA — BANK OF CANADA” is printed in clear serif typography along the lower margin of the reverse, completing the note’s authoritative identification on both faces.

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