Canadian Landscape

Canadian Landscape is the third series of banknotes of the Canadian dollar issued by the Bank of Canada, first circulated in 1954. The banknotes were designed in 1952 following the accession of Elizabeth II to the throne after the death of her father George VI. The banknote designs differed significantly from the preceding 1937 Series banknotes, though the denomination colours and bilingual printing were retained. This series was followed by the 1969 Scenes of Canada series.

The 1954 Canadian Landscape banknote series became known as the "Devil's Head" series, leading to design modifications for all denominations. The second variant of the series was issued in 1956.

Design

Planning for the banknotes began on 6 February 1952 after the death of George VI and the accession of Elizabeth II to the throne. The first design, created by the Canadian Bank Note Company, was deemed too similar in style to the 1937 Series, including the "elaborate scrollwork" decorating the edges of the banknotes. To reflect a "growing sense of Canadian nationalism", the design of the banknotes was significantly different from that of the 1937 Series, retaining the bilingual text and denomination colours using a modern 1950s style that abandoned Victorian ornamentation associated with Canada's colonial past. The banknotes were marked with English text to the left of the French text. The less ornate design and arrangement of elements was said to improve the legibility of the banknotes. The banknotes featured the same border style on the obverse and reverse.

All banknotes in the series measure , which are the same length as the 1937 Series banknotes but inch narrower. This change made the banknotes closer in size to the Federal Reserve Notes issued in the United States.

The new notes were introduced by Graham Towers, the Governor of the Bank of Canada, to the Parliamentary Press Gallery in June 1954, and entered circulation that September. In advertisements that ran in Canadian newspapers in September 1954, the Bank of Canada stated that design and use of two colours on the obverse were security features to deter counterfeiting.

Obverse

The banknotes all featured a portrait of Elizabeth II, based on a photograph taken by Yousuf Karsh, placed on the right side of the obverse, the first series to carry the portrait of Elizabeth as queen. The photograph was the same one used for the 1952 Canada 2-cent stamp, but was flipped to have Elizabeth II face left, and the diamond tiara she was wearing was removed. The final image was engraved by George Gunderson, master engraver at British American Bank Note Company (BABN, now BA International), after receiving approval from Elizabeth II.

The portrait's placement differed from earlier banknote series that had an oval-framed portrait in the centre of the banknote, which was more susceptible to wearing as it occurred at the crease point for a folded banknote. This was the first series to include the Canadian coat of arms, which appeared centrally in the background of the obverse.

Obverse of $1 banknote, Canada 1954 Series, "Devil's Head" printing.jpg, $1 banknote, "Devil's Head" printing
Obverse of $2 banknote, Canada 1954 Series, "Devil's Head" printing.jpg, $2 banknote, "Devil's Head" printing
Obverse of $5 banknote, Canada 1954 Series, "Devil's Head" printing.jpg, $5 banknote, "Devil's Head" printing
Obverse of $10 banknote, Canada 1954 Series, "Devil's Head" printing.jpg, $10 banknote, "Devil's Head" printing
Obverse of $20 banknote, Canada 1954 Series, "Devil's Head" printing.jpg, $20 banknote, "Devil's Head" printing
Obverse of $50 banknote, Canada 1954 Series, "Devil's Head" printing.jpg, $50 banknote, "Devil's Head" printing
Obverse of $100 banknote, Canada 1954 Series, "Devil's Head" printing.jpg, $100 banknote, "Devil's Head" printing
Obverse of $1000 banknote, Canada 1954 Series, "Devil's Head" printing.jpg, $1000 banknote, "Devil's Head" printing

Reverse

The design changes were made to portray themes more typical of Canada and lead artist Charles Comfort, contracted by the Bank of Canada to "develop a more contemporary design for Canada's currency", created a rendering of the cenotaph at the National War Memorial with an engraving of pine branches by Eric Bergman, a design he preferred when the reverse of all banknotes in the series were expected to have the same design. He simplified the design and replaced the allegorical themes from earlier banknote issues with scenes of Canadian landscapes, as executives at the Bank of Canada considered the War Memorial "too emotionally loaded". The design also included the use of horizontal bands, but the printing companies preferred the more traditional enclosed border.

In 1953, the Bank of Canada announced that the designs of the 1937 Series would be replaced with images of Canadian landscapes. The images were chosen from a set of over 3,000 photographs obtained from Archives Canada, Canadian Pacific, and several news agencies. The final set of images for consideration were required to satisfy several conditions: preference for rural scenes, no well-known scenes, no large buildings, and little indication of human or economic activity. The Bank of Canada acquired all intellectual property associated with the images, with a transfer of copyright from the owner to the Bank of Canada and the owner required to destroy any outstanding copies or negatives.

The designs included a Saskatchewan prairie scene engraved for the $1 banknote by Carl Louis Irmscher of the American Bank Note Company, the Saint-François River seen from Upper Melbourne in Richmond, Quebec, engraved by Harry P. Dawson for the $2 banknote, and an engraved scene of Otter Falls on the Aishihik River in southwestern Yukon, at mile 996 of the Alaska Highway

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