Durban had begun printing its own banknotes, Kok and his followers embarked on a similar experiment of their own and had about 10,000 one pound-notes printed for use in the area. The plans to actually introduce them never materialised, and, with the exception of a few remaining samples, almost all of them were destroyed without ever being in circulation. After the move to Kokstad, however, a new venture in introducing a local currency was more successful in 1874; designed by Strachan and Co. and minted in Germany, several coins were used (see picture) and remained in circulation long after the disestablishment of the country. Confirmation that the Strachan and Co circulated as money in the region from 1874 comes from the local Standard Bank at Kokstad . and the Managing Director of Strachan and Co Symbolism The seal included in the information-box is a rough replica of a seal shown on the first set of banknotes of 1867 which is the only known and surviving depiction. On the banknote itself, it is flanked to the left and right by a band or ribbon which reads "GOUVERNEMENT VAN | NIEUW GRIQUALAND" and includes a helm with mantling. The actual implied colours are unknown.The Griqua flag is a vertically flipped version of the "Vierkleur" used by Transvaal and the South African Republic. A single source dates its first documented appearance to 1903, but the flag itself might have been in use earlier; whether or not independent Griqualand East actually deployed it is uncertain. British Annexation (1878) In the differing sources and versions of history, the end of Griqualand East's story is as contested as its beginning, and the reasons for the country's dissolution remain hazy. Local Cape sources record an official (but heavily qualified) request in 1869, from Adam Kok III, for the establishment of British rule, on condition that land title be respected and that Griqualand East should under no circumstances be incorporated into the Colony of Natal. Contemporary reports claimed that the Griquas then sold much of their land voluntarily, and that the overall annexation of the territory took place "at the wish of the inhabitants themselves." On the other hand, opinion among the Griqua people themselves seems to have been divided. A quote by Adam Kok III, upon learning of the Colonial Offices' plans, suggests that there was misunderstanding or even deception involved in the annexation of Griqualand East: