Collection PL

China 1920 - Xinjiang Textile Emergency Currency Printed on Red Cloth, Local Authority Issue (Pick Unlisted)

An issued textile emergency currency produced in Xinjiang (Sinkiang) in the early Republican period, printed by hand from woodblock onto coarse red-dyed cotton cloth. This note forms part of the broader tradition of frontier textile currency developed in western China under conditions of monetary instability, material shortage, and decentralized administrative control. Read more →

China 1921 - Xinjiang Textile Emergency Currency Printed on Red Cloth with Sun Emblem (Pick Unlisted)

Textile emergency currency of this type was issued as functional money for everyday transactions, provisioning, and local settlement in environments where conventional paper currency was unavailable or impractical. Once monetary conditions stabilized and centralized systems expanded, such cloth notes were withdrawn and destroyed, resulting in extremely low survival rates. Read more →

China 1922 - Xinjiang Textile Emergency Currency Printed on Red Cloth, Local Authority Issue (Pick Unlisted)

Although the lower wave band reflects a shared regional design vocabulary common across Xinjiang textile issues, the overall composition, emblem structure, and calligraphic execution distinguish this note from the known 1880 Xinjiang issue and from later, more standardized paper emissions such as those of the Dihua Coin Bureau. It represents a descended regional design rather than the same issue or authority. Read more →

China 1924 - Dihua Official Coin Bureau 40 Wen Textile Emergency Issue (Pick Unlisted)

This 40 wen textile banknote represents a formally authorized emergency issue produced in 1924 by the Dihua Official Coin Bureau during a period of acute monetary disruption in Xinjiang. Faced with shortages of paper currency, disrupted transport routes, and limited access to centralized printing facilities, local authorities adopted cloth as an alternative monetary substrate to sustain everyday economic activity. Read more →

Spain 1857 - Banco de Zaragoza 100 Reales Vellon Serie A No. 23327 Full Sheet with Header and Talon Specimen (Pick S451s)

Founded in 1857 under the banking reforms introduced by the Law of January 28, 1856, the Banco de Zaragoza was one of several short-lived provincial issuing banks authorized to produce their own currency. The bank adopted a strict denomination-to-series structure: Serie A = 100 reales, Serie B = 200 reales, Serie C = 500 reales, Serie D = 1000 reales, Serie E = 2000 reales, Serie F = 4000 reales. Operating only until its absorption into the Banco de España in 1874, the bank issued comparatively small volumes, and most circulating notes were redeemed and destroyed during the centralisation of Spanish monetary issuance. Read more →

Spain 1857 - Banco de Zaragoza 200 Reales Vellon Serie B No. 07887 Full Sheet with Header and Talon Specimen (Pick S452s)

Pick S452s identifies the specimen variety of this emission, distinct from issued notes and remainders. The engraving reflects the Madrid-school style: a large Spanish coat of arms, elaborately engraved acanthus borders, and formal typographic promise text payable in Zaragoza. The talón repeats the same serial number, confirming its original audit pairing. Read more →

Spain 1857 - Banco de Zaragoza 500 Reales Vellon Serie C No. 08703 Full Sheet with Header and Talon Specimen (Pick S453s)

Rarity is extreme. PMG census entries for the broader Pick S453 family combine notes from multiple unrelated banks and do not represent Banco de Zaragoza. No full-sheet S453s specimens from Zaragoza are recorded in PMG archives or in the catalog history of major Spanish auctions (Aureo & Calicó, Cayón, Soler y Llach, Vico). This complete production sheet, preserving header, talón, and banknote together, qualifies as R8+ and may be unique. Read more →

New Zealand 1895-1908 - Bank of New Zealand £10 Brown with Serial Number Prefix Specimen (Pick S193bs)

Within New Zealand’s private banknote era, the ten pounds denomination represented a high-value instrument used for institutional and interbank purposes. Circulation examples were typically redeemed and destroyed, leaving specimen material as the primary surviving record of the type. Read more →

New Zealand 1916-1920 - Bank of New Zealand £5 Red-Rose (Orange Lineage) with Serial Number Prefix Specimen (Pick S227s)

This specimen is a reference-grade artifact of New Zealand monetary history, combining wartime production context, live serial numbering, internal control markings, and documented survival from the Bank of New Zealand’s private-issue period. Certified PMG 65 EPQ Gem Uncirculated, it is the sole PMG-certified example at this grade and Top Pop. R8 rarity. Read more →

New Zealand 1913 - Bank of New Zealand £5 Orange Multi-Serial Approval Specimen (Pick S192ms)

The presence of two printed serial numbers-marking the start and end of a controlled numbering block-reveals the operational role of this specimen in Bradbury Wilkinson’s workflow. Such pieces were used to confirm serial-register alignment, verify numbering machinery accuracy, and establish accountable production ranges for bank audits. Very few escaped archival destruction. Read more →

Australia 1905–1910 - Commercial Banking Company of Sydney LIMITED £5 Specimen Proof (Pick Unlisted)

As a proof with cancelled perforations, broad margins, and fully preserved plate detail, this example stands among the finest surviving artifacts of early-twentieth-century Australian paper money. Its PMG 63 EPQ Top Pop status further elevates it as a benchmark for scholars and advanced collectors studying the final private-bank issues of the Australian continent. Read more →

Australia 1880-1889 - Commercial Banking Company of Sydney Limited £5 with Serial Prefix SPECIMEN (Pick Unlisted, MVR4a)

A printer-issued £5 SPECIMEN prepared by Bradbury, Wilkinson & Co. for the Commercial Banking Company of Sydney Limited, dating to the late 1880s production window (ND 1880–1889), and bearing live serial numbers rather than zero or placeholder prefixes. This piece represents an internal control or approval specimen drawn from a numbered production sequence, distinct from margin-heavy proof impressions or display specimens. Read more →