Collection PL

Italy 1871–1872 - Banca Italo-Germanica 250 Lire Specimen (Pick S976s)

The note’s allegorical figure-Italia armed with shield and lance-embodies the nationalist mythmaking of the period, projecting unity, legitimacy, and sovereign stability at a time when the country’s financial systems were anything but stable. Its presence on a private banknote is historically significant: it illustrates how commercial institutions attempted to appropriate national symbols to bolster their credibility in a fragmented monetary ecosystem that lacked central authority. In this sense, the note functions both as a financial instrument and a cultural-political statement. Read more →

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. Read more →

China 1918 - Xinjiang Textile Emergency Currency Printed on Red Cloth, Local Authority Issue (Pick Unlisted)

An issued textile emergency currency produced in Xinjiang (Sinkiang) during the early Republican period, printed by hand from carved woodblocks onto red-dyed cotton cloth. This note represents a locally authorized substitute currency created for circulation under conditions of monetary instability, material shortage, and fragmented administrative control in China’s western frontier. Read more →

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

An issued textile emergency currency produced in Xinjiang (Sinkiang) during the early Republican period and printed by hand from carved woodblocks onto coarse red-dyed cotton cloth. This note represents a locally authorized substitute currency created for circulation under conditions of monetary disruption, limited access to paper stock, and fragmented administrative control in China’s western frontier. Read more →

Argentina 1844 - Provincia de Buenos Ayres 5 Pesos Moneda Corriente Issued Note, 1º Febrero 1844, Rosas Confederation Legend, Rosas Signature (Pick S389)

Rojas y Patrón was a central figure in the transformation of Buenos Aires’ financial system. Following the dissolution of the Banco Nacional, he oversaw the establishment and administration of the Casa de Moneda as the primary issuing authority, implementing strict fiscal controls, centralized accounting, and direct treasury oversight. Currency issued under this framework, including this note, reflects a deliberate and structured monetary policy rather than fragmented provincial emission. Read more →

Argentina 1867 - Banco de Londres y Rio de la Plata 4 Reales Plata Boliviana Proof (Pick S1734p)

Beyond its printed details, this piece captures a rarely told chapter of Argentina’s monetary adolescence. In 1867, provinces like Santa Fe and Entre Rios were still using a cocktail of currencies - reales, pesos bolivianos, private banknotes, merchant drafts, and foreign coin. The Banco de Londres y Rio de la Plata stepped into this fragmented environment with the explicitly British strategy of stabilizing trade routes and agricultural exports through reliable convertible paper. This little 4 Reales note represents the bank’s attempt to impose order on a chaotic frontier economy, where a single cowhide or sack of grain could be worth more than the entire circulating paper stock. Read more →

Argentina 1871 - Banco de Londres y Rio de la Plata 10 Pesos Rosario No. 000001 Specimen (Pick Unlisted)

The monetary context of early 1870s Argentina was fragmented, with multiple standards circulating simultaneously, including pesos bolivianos, pesos fuertes, reales, and private bank issues. Banco de Londres notes promised payment in moneda boliviana or its legal equivalent, positioning the bank as an intermediary within a complex multi standard environment rather than a unified national system. Read more →

Argentina 1884 - El Banco del Chaco 1 Peso Moneda Nacional Oro Serial 05056 (Pick S1566)

El Banco del Chaco operated within Argentina’s fragmented 1880s banking system, when provincial institutions issued gold-backed paper convertible on demand. Under this charter the Chaco branch financed frontier settlement and export agriculture, embodying the optimism of the northern provinces before the 1890 crash. Cataloged Pick S1566 / Bauman CHA-01a. Read more →

Argentina 1884 - El Banco del Chaco 1 Peso Moneda Nacional Oro Serial 15849 (Pick S1566)

Cataloged Pick S1566 / Bauman CHA-01a, this is the highest recorded serial among known examples and the only fully preserved specimen traced to the market. It complements the earlier 05056 fragment, confirming press continuity and range across the print run-likely no more than 22,000 sheets, based on the RPN Subasta 22315 reference (Serial 22315). PMG census shows only two graded survivors worldwide, neither matching these serials. Together this pair constitute the definitive record set for Pick S1566, providing the first complete visual documentation of El Banco del Chaco’s 1 Peso Oro issue in private hands. Read more →

Argentina 1866 - Banco de Londres y Rio de la Plata 1 Real Rosario Type A with Printed Signature Issued Note (PS1731, Bauman SFE 70)

Argentina's monetary environment at the time was highly fragmented. Reales, pesos fuertes, Bolivian silver coinage, merchant drafts, and private bank issues circulated simultaneously. By specifying redemption in "Plata Boliviana," the bank aligned the note with a widely recognized silver reference unit used in cross-border commerce throughout the Andean and Rio de la Plata trade networks. Read more →

Argentina 1866 - Banco de Londres y Rio de la Plata 1 Real Rosario Type B with Hand Signature Issued Note (PS1731, Bauman SFE 70)

The Argentine monetary system of the 1860s remained highly fragmented. Provincial issues circulated alongside pesos fuertes, reales, merchant drafts, and Bolivian silver coinage. By specifying redemption in "Plata Boliviana," the bank aligned its obligations with a widely recognized silver reference used throughout regional trade networks. Read more →

Paraguay 1907 - 100 Pesos with 1912 State Overprint (Pick 134, Base Pick 159)

The note therefore occupies a central position in the monetary story of Paraguay’s 1912 crisis. It shows the state trying to impose order on a fragmented paper-money environment without abandoning the technical quality and legal language of the earlier issue. The 100 Pesos denomination was substantial, and its printed equivalence to ten sealed gold pesos made it especially sensitive in a market where paper value, official value, and confidence were no longer perfectly aligned. For ordinary circulation, the overprint functioned as a public guarantee; for collectors and historians, it records the exact moment when an earlier private or bank-associated obligation was absorbed into the emergency machinery of the Paraguayan state. Read more →