Do you know the Cayman Islands? This territory of 264 square kilometres covers three islands and is located in the Caribbean Sea between Jamaica and Yucatan. The islands were discovered by Christopher Columbus in 1503, but were not inhabited until the second half of the 17th century.
Columbus named them the Turtle Islands. They were renamed Cayman, the name of the marine crocodiles that had taken up residence there in 1530.
In 1670, following the Treaty of Madrid, the Cayman Islands and their neighbour Jamaica came under English control. The Cayman Islands remained part of Jamaica until 1962, after the dissolution of the West Indies.
The Cayman Islands are currently part of the British Overseas Territories, along with Gibraltar, Bermuda and 11 other territories.
As such, the Cayman Islands have their own currency known as the Cayman dollar. The Cayman dollar replaced the Jamaican dollar on the island in 1971. Caymanian banknotes and coins have been in circulation for some fifty years.
Its exchange rate is directly linked to that of the US dollar. It is worth 20% more than the US dollar. There are 4 types of coin: 1, 2, 5 and 25 cents. These coins have changed material.
From 1972 to 1992, the 1 cent coin was made of bronze and the other coins of cupronickel. Since then, coins have been made of bronze- or nickel-plated steel, depending on
their value. The first banknotes, in denominations of 1, 5, 10 and 25 dollars, were put into circulation in 1972. In 1974, a $40 note was added, which was issued for a short period in 1981. The following year, 1982, 100-dollar notes were added to the series. The range was completed in 1987 with 50-dollar notes. The first banknotes were printed by the CICA (Cayman Islands Currency
Board). Banknotes printed after 1997 are issued by the Cayman Islands Monetary Authority (CIMA) founded in 1987.
Valuable banknotes?
Given their rarity, banknotes and coins have a value well in excess of their face value. Obviously, the most sought-after are those with the highest values, which are also the rarest.!
Want to see more Cayman Islands banknotes and coins? You’ll find them on Delcampe!
