02 August 2011
Jersey's Treasury and Resources Minister, Senator Philip Ozouf, plans to issue a new £100 note to mark Her Majesty the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee in 2012.
The note will feature the holographic portrait of the Queen, ‘Equanimity’, commissioned by Jersey Heritage Trust on behalf of the Island of Jersey to mark the octocentennial anniversary of the Island’s allegiance to the Crown. The portrait was conducted as a creative collaboration between artist Chris Levine and holographer Robert Munday of UK company Spatial Imaging. The hologram has now been selected as a lead image in the National Portrait Gallery's touring Jubilee exhibition 'The Queen: Art and Image'.
‘Equanimity’ was commissioned to commemorate the 800th anniversary of the Island's allegiance to the British Crown and a copy is on display in Mont Orgueil’s Tudor Hall. Described as amongst the finest images of the Queen, the hologram series will feature as headline images in the 'The Queen: Art and Image' exhibition. During the next 14 months they will be on display in public galleries in Edinburgh, Belfast, Cardiff and London, alongside works by Lord Lichfield, Andy Warhol, Lucian Freud, Cecil Beaton and Pietro Annigoni.
Senator Ozouf said “2012 will mark Her Majesty the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee and a commemorative note would be a fitting way to celebrate the event. In order to issue a new £100 note, I will be asking the States to amend the existing 1959 law which limits the maximum denomination of any currency note to £50.
“As with our most recent set of banknotes, the commemorative £100 note will feature English, French and Jèrriais. I am hopeful that, as well as forming an integral and useful part of our currency, these new notes will become collectors’ pieces in their own right.“
Assistant Chief Minister, UK and International Relations, Senator Freddie Cohen added “The National Portrait Gallery’s exhibition will be the major London gallery exhibition for the Jubilee year. It is a remarkable opportunity for Jersey's majestic portrait of the Queen to have been accorded such iconic status and to have been chosen along with other images from the hologram series as lead images in this prestigious exhibition.”
The issuing of this banknote is part of a wider project to use the holographic portrait to promote the Island internationally throughout the Jubilee year. This will be done with the help of local art adviser Philip Hewat-Jaboor, who will act in an honorary capacity.
Mr Hewat-Jaboor said “This portrait of the Queen is a moving and powerful image of statehood and will, in this Diamond Jubilee year, allow us many exciting opportunities to present to the wider world a better understanding of our Island and our allegiance to the monarchy.”
Jersey Heritage Trust Director, Jon Carter, added “We commissioned this portrait to show the value of Jersey's traditions in a very contemporary way, so we are really pleased at the tremendous international publicity it has generated for the Island. The new banknote will take that even further.”
The Treasury estimates that the cost of issuing a £100 commemorative note will be met by the income generated.
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