Collection PL

United States ca. 1970s – Giori Test Note – Jefferson Center, Black Front / Greenback (Inverted Experimental Serial, With Watermark, PMG 64 EPQ)

Experimental intaglio test note printed around the 1970s by the Bureau of Engraving and Printing on the Giori multicolor press system. Named for engineer Giovanni Giori, these sheets were used to evaluate multi-plate registration, color density, and press alignment on machinery that would later define modern currency production. The design known as the Jefferson Center joins engraved portraits of Abraham Lincoln, Thomas Jefferson, and Ulysses S. ... Read more →

United States 1872 – State of South Carolina $20 Revenue Bond Scrip (Act of March 2, 1872, Columbia Issue, PMG 66 EPQ Gem Uncirculated)

The $20 Revenue Bond Scrip of the State of South Carolina, dated March 2, 1872, represents one of the most ornate and historically revealing fiscal issues of the Reconstruction era. Authorized by the Act of March 2, 1872, these notes were used by the state government to pay outstanding obligations and to serve as tax receipts during a period of severe post–Civil War financial strain. Printed by the American Bank Note Company in New York, the scrip combined fine engraving, symbolic imagery, and the technical artistry characteristic of the firm’s early 1870s production. ... Read more →

United States 1872 – State of South Carolina $50 Revenue Bond Scrip (Act of March 2, 1872, Columbia Issue, PMG 67 EPQ Superb Gem Uncirculated)

The fifty-dollar Revenue Bond Scrip authorized by the Act of March 2, 1872, stands among the most elaborate and symbolically charged notes of Reconstruction-era South Carolina. Produced by the American Bank Note Company of New York, these notes were issued to pay state obligations and to function as tax receipts, serving as both a medium of exchange and an assertion of solvency during a turbulent postwar decade. The design balances artistry and propaganda. ... Read more →

Confederate States of America 1864 – 100 Dollars (T-65 CR-121, Pink Underprint, Richmond)

The one-hundred-dollar note of the February 17, 1864 Confederate issue, cataloged as T-65 (Criswell 121), was the highest denomination of the Confederacy’s final paper-money series. Printed by Keatinge & Ball in Columbia, South Carolina, this design became one of the most recognizable icons of Confederate finance during the final year of the Civil War. The central vignette features an allegorical female portrait often associated with Lucy Pickens of South Carolina. ... Read more →

United States ca. 1960s–70s – American Bank Note Company Test Note, 10 Units, Green Series of 1929 (With Watermark and Segmented Foil Security Thread, PMG 66 EPQ Gem Uncirculated)

This engraved test note by the American Bank Note Company (ABNCo) represents one of the firm’s most enduring demonstration designs, known as the 'Series of 1929' specimen. Although dated 1929, these were printed decades later—primarily in the 1960s and 1970s—as house proofs and sales samples showcasing engraving precision, watermark technology, and later innovations such as foil-thread anti-counterfeiting devices. The layout follows classic ABNCo symmetry: a central allegorical portrait of Liberty, derived from earlier U.S. ... Read more →

United States 1929 Type 1 – 10 Dollars National Bank Note – The First National Bank of Taylorville, Illinois (Fr.1801-1, Charter 3579, PMG 30 Very Fine)

This Series 1929 Type 1 ten-dollar note from The First National Bank of Taylorville, Illinois (Charter 3579) is a national-level rarity and a true anomaly in U.S. banking history. The bank officially ceased operations in October 1929—barely months after the introduction of small-size National Bank Notes—making it one of the first casualties of the transition from large-size to small-size currency. ... Read more →

United States 1902 – 20 Dollars National Bank Note – The First National Bank of Taylorville, Illinois (Charter 3579, Large Size Plain Back, Raw Very Good)

Large-size 1902 Plain Back twenty from The First National Bank of Taylorville, Illinois, Charter 3579, a seldom-seen issuer that entered receivership on October 18, 1929 at the very start of the small-size era. Organized and chartered in October 1886, the bank operated for more than four decades, but its total national-currency output was modest for an Illinois institution and survivorship today is extremely thin. Face design shows Treasury Secretary Hugh McCulloch at left, blue charter numerals 3579, and the classic U.S. ... Read more →

United States 1902 – 5 Dollars National Bank Note – The Thomas County National Bank of Colby, Kansas (Fr.609, Charter 13076, Error Note, PCGS 64 Very Choice New)

Organized in May 1927, The Thomas County National Bank of Colby, Kansas, was one of the last institutions chartered under the National Banking Act, entering the system just as small-town banks faced increasing consolidation pressures. Chartered as number 13076, it was led by cashier N. Reimers and president W. ... Read more →

United States 1929 Type 1 – 5 Dollars National Bank Note – The Thomas County National Bank of Colby, Kansas (Charter 13076, Raw Circulated Example)

Circulated five-dollar note from The Thomas County National Bank of Colby, Kansas (Charter 13076), Series of 1929 Type 1. This example represents the true working currency of the Great Plains during the Depression years—money that passed through farms, shops, and local hands in northwest Kansas at a time when the nation’s economy was in flux. The note follows the standard small-size Type 1 national design with Abraham Lincoln’s engraved portrait at center, flanked by bold denomination counters and the brown Treasury seal at right. ... Read more →

United States 1929 Type 1 - 20 Dollars National Bank Note - The First National Bank of Youngstown, Ohio (Fr. 1802-1, Charter 3, Legacy Currency Grading Fine 15)

Low-charter national. The First National Bank of Youngstown operated under Charter 3, a single-digit charter number issued in the opening days of the National Banking era. Early charters are coveted because they document the very first adopters of the 1863 National Banking system and their numbers stayed with the bank through every redesign and consolidation. ... Read more →

United States 1902 — 5 Dollars National Bank Note, The First National Bank of Youngstown, Ohio, Blue Seal Plain Back (Friedberg 600, Charter 3, PMG 15 Choice Fine)

Large‑size National Currency from a single‑digit charter. The First National Bank of Youngstown carried Charter 3, issued at the very start of the National Banking era. Low charter numbers stayed with an institution across redesigns, so CH 3 on a 1902 large‑size note directly links back to the earliest adopters of the 1863 system. ... Read more →

Uruguay 1939 — Departamento de Emisión del Banco de la Republica Oriental del Uruguay 500 Pesos Photographic Proof Pair (Pick Unlisted)

A complete photographic proof pair for the 1939 500 Pesos issue produced by the American Bank Note Company for the Departamento de Emisión del Banco de la Republica Oriental del Uruguay. Issued as part of Uruguay’s unified 1939 monetary series, the 500 Pesos denomination occupied a senior position within the structure of the issue, second only to the 1,000 Pesos. The obverse features a classical female head in profile, framed within an ornate architectural cartouche and accompanied by the full denomination and national arms. ... Read more →