Collection PL

Poland 1919 - Bank Polski 100 Zlotych Serial S.B. 5482263 Issued Note (Pick 57)

The notes were printed in London by Waterlow & Sons Limited and held in reserve while the Polish marka remained the circulating currency. This 1919-dated issue entered circulation on 28 April 1924, when the new zloty was introduced and Bank Polski began operations as the central issuing institution. The delayed release connects the note directly with both the restoration of Polish independence and the stabilization of the national currency after the marka hyperinflation. Read more →

Poland 1919 - Bank Polski 1 Zloty Serial S.26C 070070 Issued Note (Pick 51)

Designed, engraved, and printed in 1919, the issue was held in reserve while the Polish marka remained the circulating currency. The notes entered public circulation in 1924 during the monetary reform introduced under Prime Minister Wladyslaw Grabski. The new zloty replaced the inflation-damaged marka, and Bank Polski assumed its role as the central issuing institution. Read more →

Poland 1919 - Bank Polski 1 Zloty Specimen S.36B 060793 with WZÓR and BEZ WARTOŚCI Overprints (Pick 51s)

The note was printed in France by Imprimerie Benoit Arnaud in Lyon at a time when Poland's domestic security-printing capacity was still being rebuilt after independence. Its refined engraving, fine-line ornament, and layered pastel underprinting reflect the strong influence of early twentieth-century French banknote design. Read more →

Poland 1919 - 1000 Zlotych Unissued Note (Pick 59a)

Though technically an unissued type, the 1000 złotych is one of the most coveted of the 1919 notes. Survivors are few, and most show heavy folds or restoration. This example, graded PMG 63 EPQ, is a choice survivor combining originality, vibrant inks, and paper integrity - a rare high-grade representative of Poland’s monumental early złoty design and a cornerstone of any serious interwar collection. Read more →

Poland 1940 - 10 Zlotych Printing Remnants Forgery Workshop Underprint (Miłczak 94)

Fascinating semi-finished product from a wartime forgery workshop, connected with the 10 złotych 1940 issue (Miłczak 94). The piece is printed only with the underprint of the obverse design - background guilloches and the female allegorical portrait at left - without the main face value, overprints, or full intaglio elements. Trimmed to the correct banknote format, it represents an intermediate stage in the counterfeiting process. Read more →

Poland 1940 - 500 Zlotych, Series A with Counterfeit Numbering Issued Note (Pick 98a)

Original 500 złotych note of 1 March 1940 issued by the Bank Emisyjny w Polsce, Series A, serial A 1319803. Although the banknote itself is genuine, its serial falls within the 13xxxxx numbering range later associated with diversionary forgeries of the 500 złotych denomination. Together with the 12xxxxx sequence, these numbers became compromised by the appearance of counterfeit notes, making A 1319803 an extremely rare surviving original from a range subsequently targeted for withdrawal. Read more →

Poland 1933 - 25 Zlotych Investment Fund Voucher, Series I Bon Funduszu Inwestycyjnego (Lucow 732)

The vouchers (bony funduszu inwestycyjnego) functioned as state debt instruments, essentially IOUs of the Treasury. They were non-interest bearing, but widely accepted for the payment of taxes, customs duties, and official fees owed to the state. To encourage their use, the government held weekly drawings in which selected bond numbers were repurchased at four times face value, meaning that a 25 zł voucher could be redeemed for 100 zł if chosen. This combination of fiscal utility and lottery incentive gave the notes a dual role as both practical and speculative instruments in the interwar economy. Read more →

Poland 1940 - 500 Zlotych Series B Unfinished Print Fragment (Pick 98)

PMG encapsulated the piece under the descriptive designation "Printing Remnants" without assigning a numerical grade. Its importance lies in the production evidence retained within a single unfinished note: the established obverse underprint, the absence of the principal obverse design, a substantially developed reverse, the B 2048322 serial number and the original watermarked paper. Together, these features preserve several normally integrated elements of banknote manufacture in an unfinished state. Read more →

Austria 1800 - Wiener Stadt Banco 1 Gulden Issued Note (Pick A29a)

Additional security elements include embossed dry stamps, hand-applied serial numbers, and official signatures, all characteristic of early Austrian paper money production. These features reflect a transitional phase in banknote design, positioned between handwritten fiscal instruments and later industrial security printing. Read more →

Austria 1800 - Wiener Stadt Banco 5 Gulden Issued Note (Pick A33)

Within the denomination hierarchy, 5 Gulden functioned as a true intermediary value. It was sufficiently substantial to serve for tax payments, rents, wholesale trade, and administrative settlements, yet not so high as to be confined exclusively to institutional or elite use. This made the denomination central to the functioning of the paper-money system, bridging the everyday transactional role of the 1 Gulden and the more capital-oriented function of higher denominations such as the 10 Gulden. Read more →

Austria 1806 - Wiener Stadt Banco 10 Gulden Issued Note (Pick A39a)

Within the denomination structure, 10 Gulden functioned primarily as a high-value transactional instrument. While still legally equivalent to lower Banco-Zettel, notes of this value were more commonly used for wholesale trade, larger commercial settlements, tax remittances, and administrative payments rather than everyday retail exchange. This positioned the 10 Gulden at the boundary between circulating paper money and early forms of paper-based capital storage. Read more →

Great Britain 1997 - Thomas De La Rue 100 Units Test Note Portal Watermark

A rare Thomas De La Rue test note, issued as a demonstration piece rather than circulating currency. Dated ND (1997), this 100 Units note was printed to showcase De La Rue’s advanced banknote security design, incorporating microtext, guilloche patterns, and the portal watermark. The obverse features a portrait of Thomas De La Rue with multicolor lathework and the company’s headquarters vignette. Test notes like this were produced for presentations, sales demonstrations, and security trials, not for public issue, and remain highly sought after by collectors. Read more →