Collection PL

Libya 1971 - Central Bank of Libya 10 Dinars Color Trial Specimen (Omar al-Mukhtar Portrait, Pick 37cts)

As a result, this piece stands as a primary documentary artifact of Libya’s early republican currency reform. Its significance lies in recording the precise moment when portrait, palette, and political messaging converged into a finalized banknote design, making it a museum-grade reference for the study of post-1969 Libyan monetary history and modern banknote production methodology. Read more →

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

The 1912 overprint was not a decorative or routine bank marking. It was an emergency act of monetary authority. Paraguay entered 1912 under severe political and fiscal pressure, with civil unrest, weakened banking confidence, and a shortage of reliable circulating paper. Rather than waiting for an entirely new currency series to be prepared, the government turned to existing Banco de la República stocks and converted them into state-recognized obligations by means of a direct overprint. The oval “Emisión del Estado” stamp announced that the note was no longer merely an earlier bank issue, but had been accepted into the emergency monetary structure of the state. Read more →

Barbados 1943 - Government of Barbados 100 Dollars Prefix AA Front and Back Archival Photograph Pair (Pick Unlisted)

These photographs were produced as part of internal design and approval workflows, serving as durable reference records for engraving detail, typographic placement, and overall layout. During the Second World War, proposed high-denomination issues across the British West Indies were frequently postponed or abandoned due to material constraints, security considerations, and shifting fiscal priorities. Archival photographic records preserved approved or provisional designs without committing to engraving plates or printed issues. Read more →

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

The printer imprint at the lower margin reads Charles Skipper and East Limited, London, identifying the specialist security printer responsible for the engraved proof. PMG records only one graded example for Pick 388p, and this PMG 64 Choice Uncirculated proof is that sole recorded example. Its population 1 status places it at the highest visible rarity level for the catalog number and supports its classification as an R9 Extremely Rare proof survivor. Within the Ulster Bank Limited sequence, it stands as the earlier completed proof counterpart to the later Northern Ireland proof and specimen material, including the Pick 306p design family. Read more →

Great Britain 1904 - Thomas Cook & Son $50 Circular Note Photographic Proof (Pick Unlisted)

Unlike circulating banknotes, Circular Notes were not intended to pass from hand to hand as money. They were single-use financial documents tied to a specific holder, redeemed through controlled channels, and typically withdrawn or destroyed after payment. This functional distinction places them at the intersection of banknote design, financial instruments, and early global payment infrastructure. Read more →

United States 1929 - The Warren National Bank of Peabody, Massachusetts 10 Dollars Type 2 National Bank Note, Charter 616 (Fr. 1801-2)

As a surviving 1929 Type 2 National Bank Note from Peabody, Massachusetts, this piece is a focused example of small-size National Currency from the final phase of the National Bank Note system. Its importance rests in the combination of federal currency design, local bank identification, Charter 616 attribution, Peabody industrial context, and certified preservation in PMG 25 Very Fine condition. Read more →

United States 1929 Type 1 - 10 Dollars National Bank Note - The First National Bank of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Charter 1 (Fr. 1801-1)

Charter 1 anchored Philadelphia finance from the Civil War through the Great Depression. Early leadership included Morton McMichael Jr. as cashier with presidents Clarence H. Clark and George Philler, later followed by Kenton Warne, Thomas W. Andrew, Carl H. Chaffee, and Livingston E. Jones in the 1902 series to 1930s period. As the city industrialized and its capital markets expanded, the bank absorbed neighboring nationals and carried Charter 1 forward through multiple consolidations, keeping the lowest-numbered charter alive into the modern era. Read more →

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

This fifty-dollar denomination carries the engraved portrait of President Ulysses S. Grant at center, flanked by allegorical vignettes symbolizing commerce and productivity. The reverse, titled 'Panama,' depicts a sweeping allegory of maritime trade celebrating America’s engineering triumph-the opening of the Panama Canal in 1914. It is one of the few note designs in U.S. history to feature an explicitly contemporary event, pairing the theme of economic expansion with the assertion of global reach. Read more →

Paraguay 1907 - Banco de la República 100 Pesos Issued Note (Pick 159)

The note is historically important because it represents the starting point of the entire 1907 to 1912 Paraguayan revalidation story. The later overprinted issues cannot be fully understood without this base note. The 1912 state-overprint issue, cataloged as Pick 134, was created directly on this Pick 159 design, while the still rarer dual-side state and treasury revalidation specimen shows an additional layer of fiscal control applied to the same original type. This issued note therefore serves as the clean benchmark for the whole family: the unaltered Banco de la República obligation before emergency state intervention. Read more →

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

As a specimen, this piece represents a pre-circulation state, typically produced for internal approval, institutional reference, or regulatory presentation. Its status is exceptional: serial No. 0001, marking it as the very first pull, likely prepared for board-level approval or formal presentation purposes. Read more →

Italy 1869 - Bradbury, Wilkinson and Company Portrait of Man for Credito Agricolo della Cassa di Risparmio in Bologna 30 Lire Design Intaglio Vignette

This piece represents a working design element rather than a standalone artwork. Its direct linkage to the 30 Lire Credito Agricolo note places it within the exact production sequence of that issue, documenting how individual engraved components were created and later assembled into the finished banknote. Read more →

Brazil 1963 - 100 Cruzeiros Specimen (Pick 180s)

Specimens were integral to De La Rue’s quality-control and marketing practices, distributed to client archives and central banks to showcase technical competence. Surviving examples such as this provide a direct visual record of Brazil’s partnership with British printers during one of the most active decades in its numismatic history, preceding the revaluation that replaced the Cruzeiro in 1967. Read more →