20 Baht THB Banknote (Standard Issue) 1981

20 Baht Baht / Tical (Issued 1981)

The equestrian monument of Queen Suriyothai, the revered sixteenth-century Thai queen celebrated for her self-sacrifice in battle, dominates the reverse of this 1981 Thai twenty baht note, serving as a powerful symbol of national heroism and patriotism. Suriyothai’s legend holds a cherished place in Thai cultural identity, making her an entirely fitting subject for a widely circulated denomination. The depiction of warriors on horseback rendered in finely detailed intaglio engraving brings a sense of drama and historical grandeur to everyday currency. This issue forms part of the general series produced during the reign of King Bhumibol Adulyadej and reflects the aesthetic priorities of Thai banknote design during that era.

On the front, the dominant feature is a three-quarter portrait of King Bhumibol Adulyadej — Rama IX, the ninth monarch of the Chakri dynasty and one of the longest-reigning monarchs in world history — depicted in military dress uniform adorned with medals and insignia, rendered in fine intaglio engraving with precise tonal gradation across the face, collar, and epaulettes. His spectacles are clearly visible, a characteristic detail that makes this portrait immediately recognisable. The background behind the portrait is filled with an intricate guilloché latticework pattern of fine crosshatched lines in warm grey and olive tones, giving the note a rich, layered texture. To the upper left, the Garuda emblem — the mythological bird that serves as the royal symbol of Thailand — is printed in purple, flanked by decorative foliate scrollwork. The issuing authority name is printed in Thai script across the upper centre of the note in bold characters, with a secondary line of smaller Thai script text appearing directly beneath. The denomination is expressed both in large Thai numerals positioned centrally to the left and in the familiar Western numeral “20” printed in red at the lower right corner. A serial number reading 05 K 674528 appears in black at the upper right, and a second serial number rendered in Thai numerals is positioned along the lower edge. Two facsimile signatures of authorising officials appear across the lower-centre field. The overall colour palette of the front is dominated by grey-green tones with accents of red and purple, printed on crisp, lightly textured paper. A central oval watermark zone is left as a pale, unprinted reserve area to the left of centre, where the watermark portrait of King Bhumibol would be visible when the note is held to the light.

The reverse presents a dramatic intaglio engraving of the equestrian monument of Queen Suriyothai, depicted in a dynamic sculptural composition showing a mounted warrior queen accompanied by mounted and foot soldiers, all rendered in rich grey-black engraving with fine line detail capturing the texture of armour, horses’ musculature, and the movement of fabric and weaponry. The monument appears to rise from an ornately engraved decorative base incorporating traditional Thai motifs. Behind the central sculptural grouping, a softly printed background suggests an open sky with subtle blue and lavender tones fading towards the horizon, providing depth and contrast to the darkly engraved foreground figures. In the upper left corner, the denomination is shown in Thai numerals in a brownish-orange tone, while the Western numeral “20” appears in the lower left in similar colouring, both framed by the sweeping guilloché border patterns that run around all four edges of the note. The Garuda emblem is reproduced in the upper right corner in an orange-brown ink. To the right of the central engraving, a large oval reserve area is left intentionally blank — this corresponds to the watermark zone and is a deliberate security feature. Thai script text appears in a small panel above and to the right of the central image. The border design incorporates repeating geometric and floral guilloche patterns throughout, giving the reverse a refined, authoritative appearance consistent with international banknote printing standards of the period.

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