10 Pounds Sterling 2018, Kingdom of Great Britain
| no number in katalog | - |
| Years of issue: | 01.03.2019 |
| Edition: | |
| Signatures: | Chief Executive Officer: Ross Maxwell McEwan |
| Serie: | Northern Ireland |
| Specimen of: | 12.04.2018 |
| Material: | Polymer |
| Size (mm): | 132 х 69 |
| Printer: | De la Rue currency,Gateshead |
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Description
Watermark:
Lough Erne in County Fermanagh - Position on map and denomination 10.
Lough Erne (/lɒx ɛərn/ LOKH AIRN, from Irish: Loch Éirne) is the name of two connected lakes in County Fermanagh, Northern Ireland. It is the second-biggest lake system in Northern Ireland and Ulster, and the fourth biggest in Ireland. The lakes are widened sections of the River Erne, which flows north and then curves west into the Atlantic. The smaller southern lake is called the Upper Lough as it is higher up the river. The bigger northern lake is called the Lower Lough or Broad Lough. The town of Enniskillen lies on the short stretch of river between the lakes. The lake has 154 islands along with many coves and inlets. When windy, navigation on Lower Lough Erne, running for 26 miles (42 km.) almost to the Atlantic, can be something of a challenge with waves of open-sea dimensions. Shallow Upper Lough Erne, spreading southeast of Enniskillen for about 12 miles, is a maze of islands. The River Erne is 80 ml. (129 km.) long and drains an area of about 4,350 km2.
Lough Erne (Loch Éirne) appears to be named after an ancient population group called the Érainn, or after a goddess from which the Érainn took their name. Since tribes were often named after a divine ancestor, T. F. O'Rahilly suggested that the Érainn took their name from a goddess named Érann and that Loch Éirne probably means "lake of (the goddess) Érann". O'Rahilly and other scholars have connected these names to Ériu (modern Éire), the goddess after which Ireland is named. He writes that the earlier forms of these goddess names were Everna/Iverna and Everiu/Iveriu and that both come from "the Indo-European root ei-, implying motion". In his view Érann and Ériu would thus appear to mean "she who travels regularly", explained as "the sun-goddess, for the sun was the great celestial Traveller". Alternatively, John T. Koch suggests that Ériu was a mother goddess whose name comes from an Indo-European word stem meaning "fat, rich, fertile".
In Irish mythology and folklore, there are three tales about the lake's origins. One says that it is named after a mythical woman named Erne, Queen Méabh's lady-in-waiting at Cruachan. Erne and her maidens were frightened away from Cruachan when a fearsome giant emerged from the cave of Oweynagat. They fled northward and drowned in a river or lake, their bodies dissolving to become Lough Erne. Patricia Monaghan notes that "The drowning of a goddess in a river is common in Irish mythology and typically represents the dissolving of her divine power into the water, which then gives life to the land". Another tale says that it was formed when a magical spring-well overflowed, similar to the tale of Lough Neagh. The third says that, during a battle between the Érainn and the army of High King Fíachu Labrainne, it burst from the ground and drowned the Érainn. In Cath Maige Tuired ("the Battle of Moytura"), it is listed as one of the twelve chief loughs of Ireland. Historically, the lake was also called Loch Saimer (Samhaoir). Folklore says that Partholón killed his wife's favourite hound—Saimer—in a fit of jealous rage, and the lake was named after it.
Lough Erne is the setting of a folk tale known as "The Story of Conn-eda" or "The Golden Apples of Lough Erne", which appears in Fairy and Folk Tales of the Irish Peasantry (1888). In the tale, Conn-eda goes on a quest to procure three golden apples, a black steed and a supernatural hound from a city underneath Lough Erne. The city is ruled by a king of the Fir Bolg. 
Bank logo of Ulster Bank - Daisy wheel.
Avers:
On top is the running Mountain hare.
The mountain hare (Lepus timidus), also known as blue hare, tundra hare, variable hare, white hare, snow hare, alpine hare, and Irish hare, is a Palearctic hare that is largely adapted to polar and mountainous habitats.
This species is distributed from Fennoscandia to eastern Siberia; in addition there are isolated mountain populations in the Alps, Ireland, Scotland, the Baltics, northeastern Poland and Hokkaidō. The mountain hare has also been introduced to New Zealand, Iceland, Shetland, Orkney, the Isle of Man, the Peak District, Svalbard, Kerguelen Islands, Crozet Islands, and the Faroe Islands. In the Alps, the mountain hare lives at elevations from 700 to 3800 m., depending on biographic region and season.
Viburnum opulus (common name: guelder-rose) is a species of flowering plant in the family Adoxaceae (formerly Caprifoliaceae) native to Europe, northern Africa and central Asia.
The common name 'guelder rose' relates to the Dutch province of Gelderland, where a popular cultivar, the snowball tree, supposedly originated. Other common names include water elder, cramp bark, snowball tree and European cranberrybush, though this plant is not closely related to the cranberry. Some botanists also include the North American species Viburnum trilobum as V. opulus var. americanum Ait., or as V. opulus subsp. trilobum (Marshall) Clausen.
Near the fuchsia is butterfly Cryptic Wood White (Leptidea juvernica).
Family: Whites and Yellows – Pieridae
Subfamily: Mimic Sulphurs – Dismorphiinae
Wing span: Medium-sized, 36-44 mm. (1.42–1.73 in.).
Wing upper side: White, forewing tip grey or black.
Wing underside: Light yellow, light green and light grey as patches.
Habitat: Forest edges and clearings.
Flying time: Early May-late June.
Overwintering form: Cocoon.
Larval foodplant: Meadow vetchling (Lathyrus pratensis), tufted vetch (Vicia cracca), bush vetch (V. sepium) and also other Pea family (Fabaceae) plants.
The cryptic wood white was definred as a species in its own right in 2011. (It was earlier described as réal’s wood white). Like the wood white (L. sinapis), cryptic wood white always rests with its wings against each other, which makes their upper surface difficult to study. Their long, round-tipped wings and slow, fluttering flying style are characteristic properties of both wood white species, and it is very difficult to tell them apart with absolute certainty. The blotch on the tip of cryptic wood white’s forewings is slightly darker and spreads along the leading edge towards the base (wood white’s blotch spreads towards the tip). The cryptic wood white might be more common in Finland than it is thought to be, as a completely certain identification can only be made with a study of the genitals. (www.luontoportti.com)
Revers:
On top is, again, sitting Mountain hare. The brown 10-pound note focuses on Northern Ireland as a place of growth, both in terms of agriculture and heritage.
On banknote are the field of County Fermanagh. Two farmers, and Clydesdale horses, are plowing.
County Fermanagh (from Irish: Fir Manach or Fear Manach, meaning "men of Manach") is one of the thirty-two counties of Ireland and one of the six counties of Northern Ireland. The county covers an area of 1,691 km² (653 sq mi.). Enniskillen is the county town and largest in both size and population.
The Clydesdale is a breed of draft horse named for and derived from the farm horses of Clydesdale, a county in Scotland. Although originally one of the smaller breeds of draught horses, it is now a tall breed. Often bay in color, they show significant white markings due to the presence of sabino genetics. The breed was originally used for agriculture and haulage, and is still used for draught purposes today. The Budweiser Clydesdales are some of the most famous Clydesdales, and other members of the breed are used as drum horses by the British Household Cavalry. They have also been used to create and improve other breeds.
The breed was developed from Flemish stallions imported to Scotland and crossed with local mares. The first recorded use of the name "Clydesdale" for the breed was in 1826, and by 1830, a system of hiring stallions had begun that resulted in the spread of Clydesdale horses throughout Scotland and into northern England. The first breed registry was formed in 1877. In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, thousands of Clydesdales were exported from Scotland and sent throughout the world, including to Australia and New Zealand, where they became known as "the breed that built Australia". However, during World War I, population numbers began to decline due to increasing mechanization and war conscription. This decline continued, and by the 1970s, the Rare Breeds Survival Trust considered the breed vulnerable to extinction. Population numbers have increased slightly in the intervening time, but they are still thought to be vulnerable.
In UV are several Ulster glade potatoes (Solanum tuberosum L. cv.) are visible.
The notes also feature culinary delights associated with the north. On 10 Pounds this is Ulster glade potatoes.
Not everyone will know who John Clarke is, but soon people will be confronted with his potatoes whenever they go shopping. His impact on the world of potatoes is to be celebrated in Ulster Bank’s new bank note designs.
Clarke, who died in 1980, was respected by contemporaries and specialists alike, with experts from Cambridge University visiting him on the north coast to learn from his work. He also won many awards, including the Lord Derby Gold Medal in 1948, the John Snell Medal from the National Institute of Agriculture Botany, Cambridge, in the 1950s, and the Belfast Telegraph Cup for outstanding achievements in agriculture.
His first potato, the Ulster Monarch, was certified by the Ministry for Agriculture in 1936, and over the next 51 years, he had 33 varieties certified, of which the first 30 had the prefix Ulster. It is the ground-breaking Ulster Glade which features in Ulster Bank’s new £10 note, alongside the Irish hare, the Cryptic Wood white butterfly, the Guelder-Rose, and Clydesdale horses.
Potato expert, Paul Watt, explains: “The Ulster Glade was the first commercial potato variety in the world to have a resistance to a particular kind of pest in the soil. Clarke was the potato equivalent of Harry Ferguson due to his impact and what he brought to Northern Ireland in terms of potato varieties. His legacy lives on as 20 to 30 per cent of potato varieties in western Europe will have genes from John Clarke’s potatoes in their background.” (spudsmart.com)
For security purposes, different textures are used for the notes, and they are also related to the geology of the country - the texture of carbonaceous limestone is 10 pounds.
Comments:
The UK is increasingly becoming a cashless society – people are now able to tap away on contactless card readers on public transport, in bars, restaurants and pretty much anywhere.
The use of physical money is naturally declining. Research from UK Finance conducted earlier this year found that debit cards are set to overtake cash as the most frequently used payment method in the UK. No doubt the appeal of paying with card is not only its convenience but also security and the ability to track spending at every point.
But while we still have coins and notes, banks across the UK are concentrating efforts on introducing more secure currency, which is harder to counterfeit – as well as implementing thoughtful designs that resonate with the public.
The Bank of England is not the only UK bank to do this. While English currency might be the most widely circulated, Scotland and Northern Ireland also produce their own bank notes, which can be used across the UK.
Ulster Bank in Northern Ireland is set to release polymer £5 and £10 bank notes, which are made of polymer like the recently-released English and Scottish ones, and have a vertical design.
The notes have been designed by Edinburgh-based service design consultancy Nile, in collaboration with creative directors Lisa Smith and Colin McCadden, and several Northern Irish illustrators and photographers. They feature plants, animals and themes that relate to the country. Type foundry Fontsmith worked on the typography, while Glasgow-based design studio O Street worked on the graphics and banknote manufacturer De La Rue worked on security features and printing.
Jeni Lennox, associate principal at Nile, says that the decision to take on a vertical format was based on a few reasons, including breaking tradition and allowing more space for illustrations.
“Firstly, we thought – why not?” she says. “Orientation of notes is a convention and designers love nothing better than to question convention. We did develop notes in both orientations and found that the vertical design gave more space for the flower illustrations, helping them sit more prominently on the note.”
“Also, notes are handled both ways round nowadays, particularly when being fed into machines, so we wanted to acknowledge this,” she adds.
She adds that the designs aim to be “honest, realistic and celebratory” of Northern Ireland’s characteristics and quirks, and that the studio wanted to avoid clichés associated with the country. Nile redesigned the Scottish notes in 2016 and 2017, and avoided “castles and tartan” for the same reason, she says.
From this way of thinking came the idea of representing the decline of segregation in Northern Ireland – namely between those who belong to the Roman Catholic and Protestant churches – and how, while divisions are still an issue, political tensions have gradually improved over time.
The £5 note is themed around migration of animals and people, and features native creatures and plants on the front, including the Brent goose and the fuchia flower. Hedges also feature, which aim to represent the idea of “porous dividers”, and symbolize divisions between different communities breaking down, says Lennox.
The back features the Strangford lough sea loch found in County Down, east Northern Ireland, as well as people running down the beach, which poignantly represents the country’s history of migration and family separation, as many Northern Irish people moved to America and Glasgow in the 20th century.
Then, when a UV light is shone on the note, another set of people appears, which looks to represent these families coming back together again as this period has passed.
The £10 note is themed around growth, and celebrates Northern Ireland’s traditional food and indigenous plants and animals, featuring a guelder-rose on the front alongside an Irish hare.
The back features an Ulster glade potato, which only appears under UV light, and hedge row fields across which ploughs are being pulled for farming.
Different textures feature on the notes for security purposes, and these are also related to the country’s geology – a greywacke sandstone texture features on the £5, while carboniferous limestone features on the £10.
Both notes have a “botanical” theme, and the colour palette broadly follows UK restrictions for currency, which are blue and green for £5 notes and brown for £10 notes.
The studio will also be designing a £20 and £50 note, which will take on more of an “urban” theme, while the £5 and £10 notes are more “rural”, says Lennox.
The back features the Strangford lough sea loch found in County Down, east Northern Ireland, as well as people running down the beach, which poignantly represents the country’s history of migration and family separation, as many Northern Irish people moved to America and Glasgow in the 20th century.
Then, when a UV light is shone on the note, another set of people appears, which looks to represent these families coming back together again as this period has passed.
The £10 note is themed around growth, and celebrates Northern Ireland’s traditional food and indigenous plants and animals, featuring a guelder-rose on the front alongside an Irish hare.
The back features an Ulster glade potato, which only appears under UV light, and hedge row fields across which ploughs are being pulled for farming.
Different textures feature on the notes for security purposes, and these are also related to the country’s geology – a greywacke sandstone texture features on the £5, while carboniferous limestone features on the £10.
Both notes have a “botanical” theme, and the colour palette broadly follows UK restrictions for currency, which are blue and green for £5 notes and brown for £10 notes.
The studio will also be designing a £20 and £50 note, which will take on more of an “urban” theme, while the £5 and £10 notes are more “rural”, says Lennox.
The design team employed a roster of Northern Irish creative people to work with. Botanical and plant-based illustrations were created by Abigail Bell, while illustrations of people and other features were created by Peter Strain. Some features were also based on work by landscape photographer Chris Hill.
“We went for an illustrative, soft style, and we wanted the notes to be anonymous rather than have specific people’s faces on,” says Lennox. “We gathered this in the consultation phase.”
The note designs are also pertinent given the UK’s decision to leave the European Union (EU) – the fact that Northern Ireland voted to remain was an important consideration, Lennox adds.
“We wanted to make sure [Northern Ireland’s] identity was preserved and clearly enunciated as a welcoming country through the theme of migration,” she says. “We wanted to stress – we are open and we are friendly.”
While these notes are produced by Ulster Bank, they will be available to use anywhere in the UK – and part of the project was also about stressing how much the country provides for the UK overall.
“It’s easy for the little nations to get lost, but they’re all different and Northern Ireland has a strong voice,” she says. “It pulls its weight and has amazing industries and brilliant musicians. This is just a celebration of that.” (www.designweek.co.uk)
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