Description

2016 Great Britain £10 Banknote PMG 68 EPQ Polymer Jane Austen QEII P-395b S. John

This is the modern polymer £10 “Jane Austen” note of the Bank of England, catalogued as Pick 395b, dated 2016 (ND 2018) and bearing the S. John (Sarah John) Chief Cashier signature. The note is certified and encapsulated by PMG as Superb Gem Unc 68 EPQ, confirming both superb preservation and original, exceptional paper (polymer) quality.

Authenticity & catalog details

Country / issuer: Great Britain – Bank of England
Denomination: Ten Pounds (£10)
Series: Polymer Series G Jane Austen type, first issued in 2017.
Catalog: SCWPM Pick 395b (signature Sarah John)
Material: Guardian polymer substrate – thin, flexible plastic chosen for durability and cleaner notes.
Signer: Sarah John, Chief Cashier of the Bank of England from 2018, whose signature appears on later printings of the polymer £5, £10, £20 and £50.

Encapsulation by PMG guarantees the note’s authenticity and attributes, and protects it in a tamper-evident holder ideal for long-term collections or display.

Historical significance – from paper to polymer & celebrating Jane Austen

The polymer £10 launched in September 2017, replacing the long-running paper Darwin “tenner” and marking the Bank of England’s second step in its move to cleaner, longer-lasting polymer banknotes.

The reverse honors Jane Austen (1775–1817), following a high-profile public campaign to keep a historic woman on Bank of England notes after Elizabeth Fry was removed from the £5. Austen thus became only the third historical woman—after Florence Nightingale and Fry—to feature on a modern BoE banknote besides the monarch.

The Jane Austen polymer £10 was also issued in the bicentennial year of her death, deepening its cultural resonance for literary and British-history themed collections.

Obverse design & features – Queen Elizabeth II and the Bank of England

The front of the note (as seen in the slab) features:

A contemporary portrait of Queen Elizabeth II at right, with finely engraved detail and microlettering around the bust.
The Bank of England building and heraldic shields in warm orange and ochre tones, symbolising stability and tradition.
A large see-through polymer window with the monarch’s portrait printed within it and “£10 Bank of England” around the edge. The metallic image over the window shows Winchester Cathedral in gold foil on the front and silver on the back.
A silver foil patch with a 3D coronation crown above the window, plus an intricate hologram in the form of an open book that changes between the words “Ten” and “Pounds” when tilted.

Raised intaglio printing on “Bank of England” and in the lower-right numeral “10” provides a tactile feel, while two clusters of raised dots in the upper left corner help blind and partially sighted users identify the denomination.

Reverse design & literary iconography – Jane Austen

The reverse celebrates Jane Austen and her world with a carefully layered design:

Central engraved portrait of Austen, based on the 1870 engraving commissioned by her nephew James Edward Austen-Leigh, itself adapted from Cassandra Austen’s sketch.
An illustration of Elizabeth Bennet reading letters in Pride and Prejudice, echoing Austen’s focus on strong, intelligent heroines.
A vignette of Godmersham Park, the Kent estate of Austen’s brother Edward Knight, which inspired locations in several novels.
Austen’s quote “I declare after all there is no enjoyment like reading!” in tiny script, along with a depiction of her writing table and quills, referencing her creative life at Chawton Cottage.
A copper-coloured open book foil patch containing the letters “JA,” placed behind the crown on the front — a subtle, shimmering monogram for Austen.

These literary elements, intertwined with modern security devices, make the polymer £10 one of the most thematically rich circulating notes of the 21st century.

Advanced polymer security & technology

The Jane Austen £10 is a showcase for the Bank of England’s polymer technology:

Polymer substrate: Durable, moisture-resistant and cleaner in circulation than traditional cotton paper, helping notes last longer.
Hologram book: Tilting the note switches the legend between “Ten” and “Pounds,” a quick authenticity check.
See-through window & cathedral foil: A complex multi-layered window with metallic imaging, including Winchester Cathedral in different foil colours front and back.
Colour-changing quill: The printed quill by the window shifts from purple to orange when tilted.
Microtext & UV: Fine microlettering around the portrait and a bright “10” that appears under ultraviolet light.

Together these features make counterfeiting substantially more difficult while offering collectors a visually dynamic, technically sophisticated note.

Remarkable denomination

Though a standard £10 denomination, this issue marks a major turning point in British currency: it is part of the first generation of polymer BoE notes, replacing two centuries of paper “tens.” The combination of Queen Elizabeth II on the front and Jane Austen on the back encapsulates both constitutional monarchy and literary heritage on a widely used everyday value.

Collector’s value

For collectors, this note ticks several important boxes: a popular denomination, a beloved literary figure, a key transitional type from paper to polymer, and a distinct signature variety (Sarah John) identified as Pick 395b. Certified PMG 68 EPQ, it offers high technical quality plus the security of third-party authentication. It fits beautifully into British type sets, portrait or “women on banknotes” themes, polymer-technology collections, or as a standout modern classic alongside earlier Darwin and later King Charles III issues.