Later this month, the Bank of England will be giving away Christmas Tree baubles filled with shredded banknotes.
(c) Bank of England Museum
A transparent bauble filled with old banknotes is going to be pretty rare and a bit of a talking point for years to come, so if you fancy getting your hands on one, you need to visit the Bank of England Museum from 5pm on Thursday 21st December.
The museum is open late that evening, so you can visit the museum, which is an excellent museum to visit if you’ve never been before to see the history of banking, coins, banknotes, the bank itself and you can also try to lift a real gold bar.
However, for their Christmas Late, they will also give away transparent baubles that you can fill with shredded banknotes.
The shredded banknotes have been returned to the Bank of England at the end of their useable life for destruction. As the banknotes are made from polymer, they are usually shredded and then turned into pellets before being transformed into new plastic items, such as plant pots and storage boxes.
So, short of taking a pair of scissors to a pile of fivers, this is likely to be your only chance to see shredded banknotes before they’re recycled.
The Bank of England Museum will be open from 5pm to 8pm (last entry 7:30pm) on Thursday 21st December and is free to visit.
The banknote baubles are also free, while supplies last – one per person.
The museum is inside the Bank of England, with the museum entrance on Bartholomew Lane. Nearest tube station is Bank, unsurprisingly.
The ECB in Frankfurt have a gift shop selling all kinds of glass containers full of shredded euros at quite reasonable prices.
Selling?
Says it all really.
Can I get a bauble by post as I’m in Devon.
Can you post me some Devon Custard, I live in London
Is it possible to get a bauble without visiting for those that have no way of getting to the museum? 🙏x
I’d love one of these, but I’m in Newcastle upon Tyne. Pity you can’t order online for those of us too far away.
I too would like to take advantage of this unusual offer, but have no way of attending the museum both due to distance and expense, travel wise. Is there any possibility of receiving these baubles for people living too far away economically; practical arrangements will also make this almost impossible for most who live way outside London.
Would I be able to order one please. Happy to pay for delivery.
@ folks who want to order a bauble — you should contact the Bank of England who are running the giveaway. I’m pretty sure it’s not Ian’s decision 🙂
In line with the longstanding policy of the Bank of England if you dont live/work in London you dont count,
That would be a long-standing policy of any museum that has one building. Are people moaning that museums in Manchester wont put on events in London for example? Probably not, but if something happens in London, loads of complaints.
There are hundreds of people queuing outside the Bank museum currently (or there were 15 minutes ago when I walked past). Nobody else seems to have reported the baubles – is this the power of IanVisits?
It was a very popular event, we arrived at 4.30 and queued for an hour. People were trying to queue jump and were very aggressive towards the staff who told them to join the back of the queue. Free mulled wine, carols and shredded £50 notes to fill our bauble. Great time