Gradually, Then Suddenly
ZIM65, 2007, 1 ZWR

Slot Comment:

3rd Dollar Banknote AA Prefix

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Note Details

  

Set Details
Note Description: 1 Dollar 2007 - Wmk: Zimbabwe Bird & 1
Grade: 67 EPQ
Country: Zimbabwe
Note Number: ZIM65
Signatures/
Vignettes: 		- Sign. #8
Certification #: 8046902-024
Owner: Revenant
Set Category: World
Set Name: Gradually, Then Suddenly
Slot Name: ZIM65, 2007, 1 ZWR
Research: See PMG's Census Report for this Note

Owner's Description

This is the lowest denomination of banknote released for the 3rd dollar. It was released into circulation on 1 Aug 2008 as part of the initial rollout of the 3rd dollar and the 2nd redenomination.

I’ve heard / seen the 3rd dollar 1-dollar denomination (ZIM65) referred to as “the perfect companion for the 100 Trillion note” (Zim91) I suppose if you’re only aware of or only care about the third dollar series or the shock value of going from a small number to a big number there’s some truth to that. But I see starting with the ZIM65 note as being like coming into a story already well in progress. It is like starting a book in the middle. It is like walking into a movie theatre 30 or 45 minutes after the movie started. Yeah, you still get to see the big finale, but there is a lot of important stuff that you missed.

A person only looking at ZIM65 and ZIM91 might never know that there were two re-denominations before Zim65 was put into circulation. Of the 25 zeros that were ultimately dropped from the currency during the Zimbabwe hyperinflation, 13 of those, just over half, were chopped off before ZIM65 was released.

The 2nd redenomination took off 10 zeros and that makes this note equal to $10,000,000,000 ZWN (10 Billion 2nd dollars). That makes this note a fairly logical next step from the $500 Million notes that were the last of the 2nd dollar bearer check series. That skips a $1 Billion and 5 billion equivalent note, but skipped denominations are far from unheard of in this series / note progression. This valuation has the first few notes of the 3rd dollar series overlapping with that of the Special Agro Checks Series to some degree, but this is consistent with what was seen with the 1st denomination, and it should be remembered that the Agro Checks originally were not intended for general circulation.

The Zimbabwe regular banknotes feature an image of the Chiremba balancing rock formation - three balancing rocks that are in Matobo National Park. The image of the stones was chosen as a metaphor for balancing development and environmental protection following the country’s transition from white-ruled Rhodesia to the majority black ruled Zimbabwe. The Matobo Hills are composed entirely of granite, and it makes for some unique and interesting formations.

The 1 dollar banknote uses an image of Victoria Falls and an image of a Cape Buffalo (African Buffalo). The image of Victoria Falls looks like it might be a re-use of the artwork previously used on ZIM30, ZIM32, ZIM40, and ZIM41 – but I cannot be sure. This image of the falls also appears on ZIM73 (20,000 ZWR) and ZIM91 (100 Trillion ZWR). The Cape Buffalo image was also used on ZIM75 (100 000 ZWR), ZIM79 (50 Million ZWR) and ZIM91 (100 Trillion ZWR). The Cape Buffalo is a popular target for recreational / sport hunting by tourists. ZIM65 uses the same images as ZIM91 (100 Trillion ZWR), in the same positions, with different colors applied. This does, admittedly, in some ways support the argument that the two notes make a great pairing, bookending the 3rd dollar series with almost identical designs.

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