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Luxembourg’s paper-money sits inside the Belgian–Luxembourg monetary union (BLEU) yet keeps a distinctly national look. From the 1960s through the early 1980s, the visual language—fine lathework, tight guilloches, restrained pastels—was shaped by Bradbury, Wilkinson & Co. and De La Rue. The cleanest record of that craft isn’t in pocket-worn notes but in the photographic proofs, printer’s proofs and specimens that escaped the printers’ archives.

This page anchors two connected chapters. First, the 1970 100 Francs (Grand Duke Jean): we show face & back photographic proofs, a rare gridline specimen used for plate alignment at De La Rue, a color-trial, a specimen, and the issued note—an end-to-end view of how BLEU-era design moved from studio film to press. Second, the unissued 1982 high denominations (500 & 1000 Francs) prepared by BWC: created as a contingency during the 1982 devaluation shock, fully proofed and color-tested, then shelved when policy stabilized and the Institut Monétaire Luxembourgeois (1983) re-anchored joint issuance. Because circulation never happened, proofs and SPECIMENs are the only witnesses—rare, high-grade survivors that document a national series “ready to print” but never released. Use the filters above to pivot by type, printer or year; card-level text ties each piece back to this story so the set reads as one coherent chapter.

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Luxembourg 1982 1000 Francs Specimen, PMG 67 EPQ

Luxembourg ND (1982) — 1000 Francs (Specimen, Pick 52bs)

Specimen from Luxembourg’s cancelled 1982 emergency issue, the country’s most ambitious independent printing project of the 20th century. Technically it represents Bradbury Wilkinson & Co.’s final generation of deep-relief intaglio portraiture—Grand Duchess Charlotte rendered in a style already vanishing from European currency as photolithographic techniques took over. The 1000 Francs carried an exquisite guilloche architecture, tonal cross-hatching, and watermark placement calculated for mechanized verification rather than hand inspection. ... Read more →

LuxembourgSpecimen19821000 FrancsPMG 67 EPQ (Top Pop) SpecimenPick 52bsPick 52bPMG 67 EPQGrand Duchess CharlotteUnissuedBWCLuxembourg1982
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Luxembourg 1982 1000 Francs Color Trial Specimen, PMG 66 EPQ

Luxembourg ND (1982) — 1000 Francs (Color Trial Specimen, Pick 52Bcts)

Color-trial specimen for the unissued 1000 Francs, pulled at Bradbury Wilkinson to test pigment balance and optical contrast before final approval. Each pass adjusted violet and green tones to preserve the Duchess’s facial relief while maintaining anti-counterfeit micro-contrast within the guilloches. The note demonstrates how intaglio depth interacts with multi-stone offset when the printer seeks harmony rather than dominance. ... Read more →

LuxembourgColor Trial Specimen19821000 FrancsPMG 66 EPQ Color TrialPMG 66 EPQPick 52bctsPick 52bGrand Duchess CharlotteUnissuedBWCLuxembourg1982
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Luxembourg 1982 1000 Francs Proof, PMG 55 EPQ

Luxembourg ND (1982) — 1000 Francs (Proof, Pick 52bp)

Large-margined plate proof of the unissued 1000 Francs, capturing Bradbury Wilkinson’s line work before color separation. On thick archival stock, the engraving reads like a topographic map—each ridge a micro-decision of burin pressure. PMG 55 EPQ Top Pop 1/1. ... Read more →

LuxembourgProof19821000 FrancsPMG 55 EPQ (Top Pop) ProofPick 52bpPick 52bGrand Duchess CharlotteUnissuedBWCLuxembourg1982
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Luxembourg 1982 500 Francs Specimen, PMG 66 EPQ

Luxembourg ND (1982) — 500 Francs (Specimen, Pick 52as)

Specimen from the same unreleased 1982 emergency series, a mid-denomination companion to the 1000 Francs. Technically, it showcases Bradbury Wilkinson’s mastery in translating classical portraiture into secure banknote design: deep-bite intaglio with an even ink film, perfectly registered with offset underprint that keeps micro-lines open at every pressure setting. PMG 66 EPQ Gem Uncirculated. ... Read more →

LuxembourgSpecimen1982500 FrancsPMG 66 EPQ SpecimenPMG 66 EPQPick 52asPick 52aGrand Duchess CharlotteUnissuedBWCLuxembourg1982
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Luxembourg 1982 500 Francs Proof, PMG 66 EPQ

Luxembourg ND (1982) — 500 Francs (Proof, Pick 52ap)

Engraver’s proof for the 500 Francs of 1982, wide-margined and printed on heavy archival paper to expose every nuance of line weight before color overlays. Under magnification the burin work shows the transitional style of late BWC engraving—mechanically assisted but still hand-finished. PMG 66 EPQ Top Pop 1/1. ... Read more →

LuxembourgProof1982500 FrancsPMG 66 EPQ (Top Pop) ProofPMG 66 EPQPick 52apPick 52aGrand Duchess CharlotteUnissuedBWCLuxembourg1982
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Luxembourg 1970 100 Francs specimen Pick 56s with rare archival printer’s gridlines

Luxembourg 1970 — 100 Francs (Specimen, Pick 56s, Archival Gridlines)

Archival specimen of the 1970 100 Francs with the printer’s blue registration grid still visible—a genuine working-press artifact from De La Rue’s London works. The grid was used to verify alignment and spacing before committing to steel; every visible intersection documents the physical geometry behind the finished currency. PMG 65 EPQ Gem Uncirculated. ... Read more →

LuxembourgSpecimen1970100 FrancsPMG 65 EPQ Gem Uncirculated Pick 56sPick 56aSpecimenGridlinesArchivalGrand Duke JeanLuxembourg100 Francs1970
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Luxembourg 100 Francs ca. 1970 face photographic proof

Luxembourg ND (ca. 1970) — 100 Francs (Face Photographic Proof, Unlisted)

Face-side photographic proof of the 1970 100 Francs, showing Grand Duke Jean in full formal dress. Printed in black-and-white and mounted on thick De La Rue archive card, this proof was the final composition review before the portrait was translated into steel. Every pencil mark—note spacing, caption weight, and crop lines—reveals how De La Rue balanced royal symbolism with functional clarity. ... Read more →

LuxembourgPhotographic Proof (Face)1970100 FrancsPCGS 63 Choice New (Mounted on Cardstock) Photographic ProofFaceUnlistedLuxembourg100 FrancsPick 56a1970
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Luxembourg 100 Francs ca. 1970 back photographic proof

Luxembourg ND (ca. 1970) — 100 Francs (Back Photographic Proof, Unlisted)

Back-side photographic proof from the 1970 production cycle, mounted with pencil annotations and approval marks. Executed in monochrome, it allowed designers to judge spatial balance, caption hierarchy, and vignette proportion without the distraction of color. The detailed cityscape view of Luxembourg is crisply rendered here, revealing framing decisions invisible in issued notes. ... Read more →

LuxembourgPhotographic Proof (Back)1970100 FrancsPCGS 64 Apparent (Mounted on Cardstock) Photographic ProofBackUnlistedLuxembourg100 FrancsPick 56a1970
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Luxembourg 1970 100 Francs specimen Pick 56s

Luxembourg 1970 — 100 Francs (Specimen, Pick 56s)

Specimen of the issued 1970 type, overprinted SPECIMEN and cancelled with circular punches, serial A000000. This note defines De La Rue’s technical peak for Luxembourg: a finely cut intaglio portrait resting on offset color fields precisely matched for machine counting and extended circulation. PMG 66 EPQ Gem Uncirculated. ... Read more →

LuxembourgSpecimen1970100 FrancsPMG 66 EPQ Gem Uncirculated Pick 56sPick 56aSpecimenPMG 66 EPQLuxembourg100 Francs1970
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Luxembourg 1970 100 Francs color trial specimen Pick 56cts

Luxembourg 1970 — 100 Francs (Color Trial Specimen, Pick 56cts)

Color-trial specimen of the 1970 100 Francs printed in an experimental blue palette rather than the adopted green, with red SPECIMEN overprint and punch cancels. Serial A000000. PMG 58 EPQ Choice About Unc. ... Read more →

LuxembourgColor Trial Specimen1970100 FrancsPMG 58 EPQ Choice About Unc Pick 56ctsPick 56aColor TrialSpecimenLuxembourg100 Francs1970
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Luxembourg 1970 100 Francs issued note Pick 56a

Luxembourg 1970 — 100 Francs (Issue, Pick 56a)

Issued 1970 100 Francs, serial A143655. PMG 65 EPQ Gem Uncirculated. In technical terms it exemplifies post-war European craftsmanship—high-cotton paper stock, deep intaglio portrait of Grand Duke Jean, and an underprint deliberately thinned at key intersections to aid machine reading and prolong plate life. ... Read more →

LuxembourgIssued1970100 FrancsPMG 65 EPQ Gem Uncirculated Pick 56aIssued100 FrancsLuxembourg1970
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Luxembourg 20 Francs face photographic proof ca. 1965

Luxembourg ND (ca. 1965) — 20 Francs (Face Photographic Proof, Unlisted)

Face-side photographic proof for the planned 20 Francs of the mid-1960s, mounted with handwritten production notes. In these monochrome trials, designers verified portrait scale, caption placement, and emblem spacing before commissioning full engraving. The format still bears mid-century aesthetics—tight portrait framing and minimal underprint cues—that would later evolve into the balanced De La Rue layouts of the 1970 series. ... Read more →

LuxembourgPhotographic Proof (Face)196520 FrancsPCGS 64 Apparent (Mounted) Photographic ProofFacePick UnlistedLuxembourg1965
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