Collection PL

New Zealand 1907–1926 - Bank of New Zealand £20 Blue Serial-Prefix Audit Specimen (Pick S194s)

A unique high-denomination Bradbury Wilkinson audit-range specimen and the rarest surviving document from New Zealand’s private-banknote era, the £20 Blue (Pick S194s) represents the apex of BNZ’s color-coded denomination hierarchy. This specimen is not a generic zero-serial example: it carries dual live serials (No. 061001 and No. 066000), identifying it as an internal audit-range piece used by Bradbury Wilkinson for plate alignment, tint calibration, and numbering verification during the official approval process. Read more →

Australia 1879–1903 - Federal Bank of Australia, Limited £1 Sydney Specimen (Pick Unlisted)

This note is a true specimen, not intended for circulation, and was produced as part of Bradbury, Wilkinson’s export engraving program for colonial banks. The design reflects late Victorian security printing conventions: a balanced bilateral layout with allegorical female vignettes, dense blue underprinting, and wide margins characteristic of British-engraved export notes. At left, a young woman holding a lamb symbolizes prosperity and trust; at right, a classical female figure represents authority and stability. Together these figures formed a visual reassurance to depositors and merchants in Sydney and other colonial financial centers. Read more →

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

The obverse reflects Bradbury Wilkinson’s mature colonial engraving style, with a Māori chieftain and youth vignette, coastal landscape, and dense guilloche structures printed in saturated wartime tint. The reverse is executed in blue-green interlace characteristic of BWC production of the period. Read more →

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

Educationally, this piece illustrates the shift from ornate Victorian detail to a more controlled, geometry-driven Edwardian design language. The delicate layering of yellow, blue, and grey tints marks Bradbury Wilkinson’s late-colonial multicolour phase - a direct precursor to early Commonwealth notes and one of the last expressions of private-bank artistry before nationalisation. Read more →

Australia 1900 - Bank of New South Wales £20 Sydney Circular Note Specimen (Pick Unlisted)

The design combines formal banking script with an elaborate vertical security panel carrying "BANK OF N.S.W." at the left and a large yellow-gold denomination underprint extending across the central field. The paper is surrounded by a pale blue border and carries a major security feature in the form of a large BANK OF NEW SOUTH WALES watermark accompanied by oversized ornamental watermark elements extending across much of the sheet. Read more →

Australia 1890 - Bank of New South Wales £10 Brisbane Circular Note Specimen (Pick Unlisted)

The design combines formal banking script with an elaborate vertical engraved security panel at left carrying "BANK OF N.S.W." and a large yellow-gold underprint built around the denomination 10 across the central field. The paper is framed by a pale blue border and carries a large BANK OF NEW SOUTH WALES watermark together with oversized surrounding ornamental watermark elements extending across much of the sheet. Read more →

Australia 1900 - Bank of New South Wales £10 London Circular Note Specimen (Pick Unlisted)

The face combines formal script with a large yellow-gold underprint built around the denomination 10 and an elaborate vertical engraved security panel at left containing "BANK OF N.S.W." The note is printed on pale blue-edged security paper carrying a large BANK OF NEW SOUTH WALES watermark together with broad surrounding ornamental watermark elements extending across much of the sheet. Read more →

Australia 1890 - Bank of New South Wales £10 Melbourne Circular Note Specimen (Pick Unlisted)

The face is dominated by a large yellow-gold denomination underprint extending through the central field, combined with fine script, denomination lettering, and an elaborate vertical security panel at left containing "BANK OF N.S.W." The surrounding pale blue paper border creates a strong visual frame around the otherwise lightly printed central field. Read more →

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

The red duty tint completes the established chromatic hierarchy of BNZ private issues produced by Bradbury Wilkinson: Green (£1), Orange (£5), Brown (£10), Red (£1 redesign), and the terminal high denomination of the series - the Blue £20. Within this structure, the £1 Red represents the final low-denomination iteration, while the £20 Blue stands as the archival apex of the entire BNZ private-issue hierarchy. Read more →

Ireland 1920 - Ulster Bank Limited 1 Pound Proof (Pick 388p / UB39)

The design is fully realized rather than skeletal. The large blue central panel carries the denomination, while the engraved promise-to-pay text sweeps across the face in dramatic script. The top border names Ulster Bank Limited, and the lower border includes Belfast and Dublin, reflecting the bank's pre-partition Irish operating identity. At the center is a maritime and industrial vignette with a sailing ship, dockside structure, cart, plough, and landscape elements, tying the note visually to trade, agriculture, and commercial movement across Ireland. The denomination appears again in ornate cartouches at left and right, with a bold ONE panel below, creating a layered composition typical of high-quality private banknote engraving. Read more →

United States 1914 – 50 Dollars Federal Reserve Note – Philadelphia District White | Mellon (Fr.1035)

Printed by the Bureau of Engraving and Printing, the note bears the signature pair of Treasury officials White and Mellon. Its large-size layout measures approximately 7.4 by 3.1 inches, engraved with elaborate guilloche and shaded lathework that define the artistry of early twentieth-century federal issues. The Friedberg reference number 1035 identifies the Philadelphia district variety, distinguished by its blue Treasury seal and serials beginning with the prefix C. Read more →

Italy 1869 - Credito Agricolo della Cassa di Risparmio in Bologna 30 Lire Specimen (Pick Unlisted)

The design reflects the highest level of nineteenth century security engraving, with dense guilloche frameworks, a central portrait medallion, and a refined blue underprint panel integrated into the main composition. Bradbury Wilkinson’s involvement places this piece within the early expansion of British security printing influence into continental European financial systems, particularly in transitional economies seeking both credibility and technical sophistication. Read more →