When a £20 note is dispensed from a cash machine many people will place it straight into their wallet or purse without a second glance. Yet the newest addition to Britain’s banknote collection contains a plethora of hidden features that only the eagle-eyed would be able to spot.
The new £20 note, featuring the artist JMW Turner, is released into circulation on February 20. The Bank of England saysthe note is its most advanced ever, with several security and design features which make it difficult to counterfeit.
Some, such as the two clear “windows” on the note, are easy to see at first sight, but others secret features are less obvious to the naked eye.
Debbie Marriott, chief designer of the banknote, said her team had linked many of the note’s security features to Turner, but had also added several other ‘Easter eggs’ for fans of the painter to discover.
“With the security features, we try to reference the character as much as we can to make it more interesting,” she said. “The more people look at the note, the less likely they will pass on counterfeits.”
The note features a large self-portrait of Turner, which was painted circa 1799, alongside a quotation, his signature and the artwork of The Fighting Temeraire, one of his most famous works.
However, some other features, and their links to Turner, are less obvious.
Both the Winston Churchill £5 and the Jane Austen £10 banknotes included clear security windows, and the latest £20 note has added a second window in the bottomcorner. The shape of this window is based on those at Tintern Abbey, Monmouthshire, the subject of several Turner watercolours.
On the reverse there is a small purple foil patch which contains the letter ‘T’.The design of this is based on a staircase at the Tate Britain in London, which houses the country’s biggest collection of Turner's work.
Other notable art galleries are also alluded to. The main window on the banknote is an aerial view of the fountains in Trafalgar Square, outside the National Gallery. This building was the home of the Royal Academy of Arts (RA) during Turner’s life and todayhosts many of Turner’s paintings.
This is not the only reference to the RA on the note, although the other may only be visible to those with strong eyesight or a magnifying glass. Mrs Marriott said: “On the back there is some finemicro text, which reads the 'Royal Academy' - as thislinks to the time Turner was a Royal Academician.”
Margate played a majority partin Turner’s life, and the note features several references to the Kent seaside town.
“There is a lot of history and connection between Turner and Margate,” Mrs Marriott said. “It was a place where he painted many paintings and visited often.”
She explained that the note includesan image of the modern-day Turner Contemporary art gallery building in Margate in the shiny foil.
Mrs Marriott added: “We also have the use of a lighthouse, which is based in Margate. That wasn’t there when Turner was aroundas it was built in the 1950s, but it is symbolic of his seascapes and lighthouses feature in many of his works.”
Other security features of note include the hologram on the front of the note, which will change between the words "twenty"and "pounds"when the note is tilted from side to side.
A portrait of the Queen is visible in one of the security windows with the words "£20 Bank of England" printed twice around the edge. Like the £5 and £10, there is also silver foil patch which contains a 3D image of a crown.
But it is not just design and security features that have been included, raised dots on the front of the note have been added to help blind and partially sighted people tell the value of their note.
Can you spot the 14 references? 1) Turner’s self-portrait 2) The Fighting Temeraire 3) Turner’s quotation 4) Turner’s signature 5) The ‘Tintern Abbey’ window 6) The ‘Trafalgar Square fountain’ window 7) The purple foil Tate Britain with ‘T’ motif 8) Royal Academy written in micro text 9) Image of Turner Contemporary art gallery 10) A Margate lighthouse 11) Hologram of the Queen 12) ‘£20 Bank of England’ written twice around Queen’s hologram 13) 3D image of a crown 14) Raised dots for partially sighted people.
