1917 King George V British India Rupee Banknotes

 Posted 02/26/2011  5:20 pm

Does anyone here have any knowledge they can share re: 1917 Indian (British India) King George V Banknotes? I have read the Blogs and a couple of websites and have learned a bit about them.

1. They are rare due to WWI. Some got blown up when ships carrying them were sunk. Some of those notes washed up on beaches, partly burned.

2. The paper they're issued on is not cotton/linen paper but (can't remember the proper name) handmade paper and the paper is fragile tending to wear out quickly, therefore not a lot survived.

3. Certain serial numbers and locations of issue and signer are rarer than others.

4. Watermarks are also important to establish the rarity of a banknote.

5. Staple holes are common and do not detract from value.

6. I've seen a few for auction and the price range goes from one extreme to the other and makes no sense.

Can someone recommend a resource for values of the 1917 notes? None of the websites I've found have any information, just discussion of King George and places and dates of issue, signer, serial number, etc.

And, what's the difference between "rare" and "scarce?" I see these terms used frequently and I know they don't mean the same thing. I have a couple of books on U. S. coins and currencies but a family member borrowed them before I had a chance to look these puzzling terms up.

Thanks for reading this post!
Nexda