As a rectangular, many-processed piece of worthless paper having a value set by law, the bank note, is, in the true sense of the word, a monetary-symbol. We can almost say that the design plays a role in establishing authenticity and the public's trust.
The challenge of modern technology meets the challenge of communicating the meaning of the symbolism. It's symbolism is far more complex than that of, say, posters, postage stamps or traffic signs.
In the beginning the bank note contained only text ("The bank will pay the holder ten Brabant-Taler in cash").
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Slowly the drawings became more important, beginning with decorative edging to the later heraldic figures, allegoric motifs, and portraits of fictional or real persons, along with their attributes and attributes of same.
Behind this shift to graphic art was the bank's wish to showcase themselves and their country's cultural characteristics as well as the necessity to use the complex pictures were also necesary to prevent forgeries.
The note's design after the second world war illustrates this development.
