Twenty Zimbabwean Dollar Bearer Cheque

The story

This was a bearer cheque issued because of a shortage of regular paper money, a sign of the economic strain Zimbabwe faced in the mid-2000s; it was released on the same date the country redenominated its currency in August 2006. The reverse shows Victoria Falls on the Zambezi River, known as Mosi-oa-Tunya, “The Smoke That Thunders.” The falls, shared with Zambia, are among the largest curtains of falling water in the world and a UNESCO World Heritage site. The Reserve Bank logo on the front shows the Chiremba Balancing Rocks, natural granite boulders balanced on one another, a famous Zimbabwean landscape feature; one dealer places them at Epworth near Harare, while a Numista entry for an older note places similar rocks in Matopos, so the exact location is uncertain.