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The images illustrated below are from
a series of designs inspired by the guilloche filigree found on
banknotes, certificates and some coinage. Guilloche engraving was
once widely used to produce geometric ornaments so mechanically
complex that a counterfeit print would be technically difficult
or impractical to achieve.
Far from being superfluous to the banknote, this form of ornamentation
was intrinsic to its perceived value. The embellishments provided
a visible and tangible means of certifying not only the authenticity
of the note (proving it was not a fake), but also had the effect
of reinforcing its promissory power.
Use of guilloche ornament has declined in recent decades - superseded
as a means of authentication by the development of polymer substrates,
CAD patterns, micro-printing and holographic foils.
The
Ornaments are a part of my ongoing research into the relation between
print and the value of paper currency - particularly in the face
of the dematerialisation of money and its movement toward pure
digital numeracy.
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