The 10-franc note

We try to measure it, and carry with us the result of the measurement or display it in a prominent place where it is clearly visible to the public. We shift it when we travel around the globe. We need it to get from A to B. And as we normally have very little of it, we even bore through mountains in order to save it. By saving it we think that we are saving money too. In this sense, we say: “It is money”. With the launch of the new 10-franc note it will also appear on money. Time is the protagonist of the new 10-franc note. It is the overall theme that unites all the design elements, which appear on the new banknote.

Globe

Time is something that we divide into days, hours, minutes etc. This division is adjusted to the respective position of the sun. The position of the sun differs from one geographic region to another. Therefore, when we travel we not only change our current geographic position we also shift our position in time. Human beings have not only divided time, they have also divided the shifting of time into what we call “time zones”. On the one hand, these time zones can be found as a three-dimensional illustration on the globe of the new 10-franc note.

Microcosm

On the other hand, the time zones can also be found in the background of the front side when viewing the banknote in landscape orientation. In the same background, small clocks can be discovered which visually represent the time shift by rotating the hour hand by 720 degrees from one margin to the other.

Hand

Time is something that must be carefully planned in order to run events in an organised fashion. This, for example, is the case in an orchestra where the entry of each musical instrument must be timed exactly to achieve a perfect organisation of the sound.

Verso

Time is something that we try to measure. For this purpose, we use “chronometers” or clocks. The more precise the time measurement is, the more precisely we can coordinate ourselves according to the time and organise our daily lives.

Time is something that we seek to save because we only have very little of it. Time that is needed for travelling can be saved by digging tunnels through mountains. In this sense, time and tunnels are directly related to one another. This special relation also inspired the slogan used in the opening ceremony of the Gotthard Base Tunnel: “The Swiss like to be on time. This is why they love a small shortcut”.