Collection PL

China 1915 — South Sinkiang Border Defence Headquarters 1 Tael Textile Emergency Issue (Pick Unlisted)

This 1 tael textile banknote represents a formally authorized military emergency issue produced in 1915 by the South Sinkiang Border Defence Headquarters during a period of severe administrative and monetary fragmentation in western China. Issued within the southern frontier zone encompassing Khotan, Yarkand, and Karghalik, the note reflects a localized system of fiscal control exercised by military authorities operating with substantial autonomy from central government structures. The banknote is printed on hand-woven textile rather than paper, a deliberate and practical choice dictated by frontier conditions. ... Read more →

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

The finest preserved £5 specimen of New Zealand’s wartime private-banknote era and the highest-graded example recorded for Pick S227s. Printed in London by Bradbury, Wilkinson & Co. during the 1916–1920 wartime production cycle, this specimen represents an internal audit and approval piece retained from a numbered print run rather than a zero-serial display copy. ... Read more →

New Zealand 1895–1915 — Bank of New Zealand 5 Pounds Orange Specimen (Pick S192s)

The high-denomination anchor of the Bank of New Zealand color series, this five pounds orange specimen (Pick S192s) represents one of the most structurally complex and production-informative notes of New Zealand’s private banking era. Printed by Bradbury, Wilkinson & Company, Limited, London, it embodies the transition from richly ornamental Victorian engraving toward the more controlled and symmetrical Edwardian framework that followed. The composition preserves the defining elements of the earlier series—paired Māori figures within oval medallions at left, a lower maritime vignette reflecting colonial trade identity, and a dense guilloche lattice enclosing the denomination—while introducing a more disciplined spatial hierarchy across the central obligation panel. ... Read more →

New Zealand 1905–1916 — Bank of New Zealand £1 Red Cancelled Specimen with Serial Number Prefix G000001–G100000 (Pick S212bs)

An archival £1 Red specimen from the Bank of New Zealand private-issue series, catalogued as Pick S212bs and drawn from the opening serial block G000001–G100000. This example was pulled directly from the working plates of Bradbury Wilkinson & Co., London, as an approval and control specimen for internal printer and bank-director reference during the closing phase of BNZ private note production. The presence of live production serial numbers with the letter prefix G clearly distinguishes this class from unnumbered file specimens. ... Read more →

Mexico 1915 — Ayuntamiento de Zitácuaro 10 Centavos (Uncut Sheet of Four, M2952c)

This uncut vertical sheet of four 10 Centavos notes was issued by the Ayuntamiento (municipal council) of Zitácuaro in the state of Michoacán during the Mexican Revolution. Catalogued as M2952c, the issue belongs to the wave of emergency municipal currencies produced throughout Mexico between 1914 and 1916 when the collapse of the national monetary system created an acute shortage of small change. During the revolutionary conflict, the circulation of federal coinage and banknotes was severely disrupted. ... Read more →

United States 1988A — 1 Dollar Federal Reserve Note, Chicago District (Friedberg 1915-G) Insufficient Inking Error, PMG 64 EPQ Choice Uncirculated

This 1988A 1 Dollar Federal Reserve Note from the Chicago District (Friedberg 1915-G, GE Block) displays a dramatic Insufficient Inking Error that left much of the upper design on the obverse faint or missing. The portrait of George Washington remains clear and fully struck, but the border engraving, serial zone, and areas above the central vignette show patchy or absent ink transfer. This occurred during the intaglio face printing pass when the plate failed to receive an even ink layer or when the wiping cylinder overcleaned the plate prior to impression. ... Read more →

Uruguay 1900 — Banco de la Republica Oriental del Uruguay 100 Pesos Photographic Proof Pair, (Pick Unlisted)

An undated photographic proof pair for the 100 Pesos denomination produced by the American Bank Note Company for the Banco de la Republica Oriental del Uruguay. Printed on photographic paper and mounted on cardstock, this pair documents an early twentieth-century design stage preceding later interwar issues, preserved outside the currency production workflow. The obverse presents a formal portrait of José Gervasio Artigas in profile within a dense ornamental framework of laurel and guilloche elements, with the denomination prominently displayed. ... Read more →

Egypt 1914–1915 — Egyptian Red Crescent Society (Khedivial Era Membership Receipts, Two-Document Set)

Pair of original Egyptian Red Crescent Society membership receipts from 1914 and 1915, both issued on cream wove paper and printed with the early Khedivial-era layout. Each sheet carries the large red Crescent emblem at top center, rendered in thick oil-based ink with slight unevenness at the edges typical of hand-inked early Red Crescent forms. Beneath the emblem appears the full institutional title in classical Arabic script, followed by the patronage line noting the protection of the Khedivial household and the presidency of His Highness Prince Mohamed Ali. ... Read more →