Collection PL

Egypt 1910 - Riches & Mawas, Cairo–Alexandria–Tanta Commercial Draft for 1600 Piastres

Original 1910 commercial draft issued by Riches & Mawas, a prominent British–Levantine trading firm operating across Cairo, Alexandria and Tanta. The draft is printed on cream-toned security paper with a vertical deep-blue engraved ornamental panel at right. This panel features an elaborate baroque frame surrounding the intertwined R & M monogram, with the company’s three branch cities CAIRE, ALEXANDRIE, TANTA printed around the oval. ... Read more →

Egypt 1927 - Chahine & Sbath Cairo Commercial Draft Endorsed by Banque d’Orient

Original 1927 commercial draft issued in Cairo by Chahine & Sbath, the well-known textile and drapery merchants located at 4 Rue Boulac. The left margin features the firm’s elaborate vertical trade header, printed in dark grey with ornamental shading and the wording Draperie Haute Nouveauté in both French and Arabic. The typography and engraved side panel are characteristic of B. ... Read more →

Egypt 1912 - Compagnie des Bateaux Omnibus (Nile Steamer Illustrated Letterhead)

Original 17 October 1912 illustrated letterhead of the Compagnie des Bateaux Omnibus, printed on pale beige laid paper with a finely executed lithographed masthead. At the upper left is a detailed vignette showing a Nile side-wheeler steamer underway, flying the red company pennant marked C.B.O. The steamer is depicted passing a palm-lined bank with mooring post and faint pyramidal silhouettes in the background, capturing one of the most iconic motifs of early twentieth-century Egyptian river transport. ... Read more →

Egypt 1950 - Gamil Fawzi El-Motei Oldsmobile & Vauxhall Service Station (Heliopolis–Abbassia)

Original 1950 service and delivery letterhead from Gamil Fawzi El-Motei, the official Oldsmobile and Vauxhall agent in Cairo and one of the earliest postwar General Motors dealerships operating in Egypt. The top section is printed on light cream stock and features an unusually elaborate illustrated masthead for a mid-century Arab automotive agency. Two large halftone photographs dominate the header: the left image shows the dealership's illuminated evening service station with its tower signage and forecourt lighting, while the right image presents a clear street-level view of the showroom façade, with GENERAL MOTORS branding and the distinctive EL-MOTEI signage above the entrance. ... Read more →

Egypt 1922–1927 - Anglo-Egyptian Bank, Alexandria Multicolor Cheque Set (Transition to Barclays DCO)

Set of four original cheques issued by The Anglo-Egyptian Bank Limited, Alexandria branch, spanning the years 1922 to 1927. Each piece is printed on period cream banking stock with engraved borders, full branch listings, manuscript completions, and clearing stamps, offering a detailed view of interwar British banking operations in Egypt. The cheques include three distinct color printings-black, blue, and red-reflecting the evolving design and internal accounting systems used by the bank before its rebranding to Barclays DCO. ... Read more →

Egypt 1921 - National Bank of Egypt, Cairo Branch Issued Cheque

Original National Bank of Egypt cheque issued in Cairo on 23 March 1921, printed on pale cream security paper with an elaborate blue guilloche frame. The border consists of finely interlaced geometric linework characteristic of early twentieth-century British-engraved financial stationery. The upper section displays the bold NATIONAL BANK OF EGYPT title flanked by twin rosettes, presenting the institution in its combined role as both Egypt’s de facto state bank and the country’s dominant commercial bank during this period. ... Read more →

Egypt 1927 - Italian Notarial & Consular Legalization Dossier

Complete two-page Italian legal and consular legalization dossier issued in 1927, preserving both the original handwritten notarial act and the entire foreign-ministry and consular authentication chain applied in Cairo. The dossier is executed on thin cream laid paper typical of interwar Italian administrative stationery, showing vertical chain lines, light surface sizing, and natural toning consistent with official notarial production. Each leaf is folded for presentation, with handwritten content extending across both pages in a refined early twentieth-century Italian cursive hand. ... Read more →

Jersey 1840 - Bible Christian Church, Royal Crescent £1 Remainder (Pick Unlisted)

Unissued £1 remainder note of the Bible Christian Church, Royal Crescent, Jersey - a rare surviving artifact from the early 19th-century Methodist movement on the Channel Islands. Printed in blue on thin, high-quality wove paper with a large circular watermark, the piece was intended as a church-backed promissory note payable in British Sterling, guaranteed by the trustees of the congregation. The engraving features an architectural vignette of the Royal Crescent Chapel and elaborate script typography typical of 1835–1845 provincial printing. ... Read more →

Macau 1937 - Foo Hang Bank 10 Patacas Archival Printer Proof Compound Sheet (Pick S105)

An archival printer proof compound sheet prepared for the Foo Hang Bank of Macau in 1937 for the 10 patacas denomination associated with Pick S105. This pre-issue proof material survives as a single intact sheet and represents internal security-printing output created for reference, approval, and archival control rather than public circulation. Foo Hang Bank operated in Macau during a period when the territory functioned as a distinct monetary and commercial enclave within southern China. ... Read more →

United States 1935 - New Jersey 1 Dollar Borough of Palmyra Municipal Scrip Specimen (General Obligation)

This specimen represents an official municipal scrip issued by the Borough of Palmyra, Burlington County, New Jersey, Series of 1935, and denominated One Dollar. It belongs to the later phase of Depression-era local finance, when smaller municipalities continued to rely on interest-bearing scrip to manage routine obligations amid prolonged economic strain and uneven recovery. Municipal scrip differed from tax anticipation notes and formal bond issues in that it functioned as a direct acknowledgment of indebtedness by the issuing municipality, intended for circulation or settlement within the local economy. ... Read more →

Uruguay 1939 - Banco de la Republica Oriental del Uruguay 50 Pesos Specimen, Red Oval De La Rue Cancel, Serie A (Pick 38as)

This specimen note represents the fifty pesos denomination of the Banco de la Republica Oriental del Uruguay issued under the monetary law of 2 January 1939 and printed by Thomas De La Rue and Company in London. The note is clearly identified on its face as Serie A, reflecting the actual printed series rather than generalized range designations sometimes used on grading labels. Within the structure of the 1939 emission, the fifty pesos denomination occupied an important intermediate tier of Uruguay’s monetary hierarchy. ... Read more →

Argentina 1869 - Banco Domingo Garbino, 1 Peso Fuerte Issued Note with Red Overprint (Pick S1802)

Issued 1 Peso Fuerte note of Banco Domingo Garbino, printed by the American Bank Note Company (Compañía Americana de Billetes de Banco Nueva York) and formally activated for circulation through the large vertical red overprint “DOMINGO GARBINO.” This overprint was the legal validation required to convert remainder stock (Pick S1791) into fully issued, signed, numbered, and payable currency. Pick S1802 represents the only surviving issued form of the Garbino 1 Peso denomination. The base design reflects ABNC’s late 1860s export engraving style. ... Read more →