Collection PL

Uruguay 1867 - Banco Oriental 10 Pesos = 1 Doblón de Oro Sellado Dual Handwritten Signatures at Left and Right Serial 23286 Issued Note (Pick S385a)

The obverse design is identical to the standard 1867 Banco Oriental issue, featuring allegorical female figures representing Commerce and Abundance at left, the national coat of arms at right, and a prominent central orange guilloche bearing the inscription “UN DOBLÓN DE ORO SELLADO.” This inscription emphasized gold convertibility and was central to public confidence in privately issued paper money during Uruguay’s mid-nineteenth-century monetary development. Read more →

Uruguay 1867 - Banco Oriental 10 Pesos = 1 Doblón de Oro Sellado Centered Handwritten Signature Serial 35345 Issued Note (Pick S385a)

The obverse design remains unchanged from the core 1867 issue, featuring allegorical female figures representing Commerce and Abundance at left, the national coat of arms at right, and a prominent central orange guilloche bearing the inscription “UN DOBLÓN DE ORO SELLADO.” The design emphasizes gold convertibility and reflects American Bank Note Company engraving standards developed for Latin American monetary contracts of the mid-nineteenth century. Read more →

Uruguay 1867 - Banco Oriental 10 Pesos = 1 Doblón de Oro Sellado Facsimile Signature at Right Serial 74487 Issued Note (Pick S385a)

The obverse design remains consistent with all 1867 Banco Oriental Doblón notes, featuring allegorical female figures representing Commerce and Abundance at left, the national coat of arms at right, and a prominent central orange guilloche bearing the inscription “UN DOBLÓN DE ORO SELLADO.” This visual continuity underscores the reuse of the original engraved plates throughout all authorization phases of the issue. 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)

Early circulating bank vale issued by the Rosario branch of the Banco de Londres y Rio de la Plata, dated Rosario, 15 de Setiembre de 1866. The note promises payment at sight of one Real in Plata Boliviana, reflecting the silver standard widely used in regional trade across the Rio de la Plata basin and the interior provinces of Argentina during the mid-nineteenth century. 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)

Cataloged as PS1731 and Bauman SFE 70, the Rosario 1 Real series stands among the earliest surviving paper instruments issued by the Banco de Londres y Rio de la Plata, capturing the moment when international capital, provincial trade expansion, and practical commercial credit intersected in nineteenth-century Argentina. Read more →

Great Britain c.1806–1812 - Derby Bank £5 Proof (Pick Unlisted)

A printer’s proof of a £5 note prepared for the Derby Bank during the formative years of British provincial banking, dating to circa 1806–1812. This piece belongs to the critical transitional period between eighteenth-century handwritten credit instruments and the fully industrialized, security-driven banknote production that would dominate the nineteenth century. Read more →

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

As such, this proof bridges three distinct eras of monetary evolution: engraved financial instruments of the nineteenth century, Travellers Cheque and Travelers Check systems of the twentieth century, and the electronic payment networks that define global travel today. 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 →

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

Vignettes of this type were engraved separately within the security printing workflow, allowing master engravers to refine portrait structure, shading, and line depth before integration into the full note layout. The precision visible in the engraving reflects high-level nineteenth century intaglio technique, with controlled line work used to build tonal realism and dimensional depth. Read more →

Austria 1800 - Wiener Stadt Banco 5 Gulden Issued Note (Pick A33)

Surviving examples of the 5 Gulden are notably scarcer than lower denominations. Notes of this value were more frequently accumulated, redeemed, or withdrawn during successive monetary reforms and episodes of depreciation that characterized the Banco-Zettel era. As a result, the 5 Gulden stands as an important documentary witness to the practical operation, administrative logic, and eventual contraction of Austria’s earliest paper-money system at the turn of the nineteenth century. Read more →

Austria 1806 - Wiener Stadt Banco 10 Gulden Issued Note (Pick A39a)

Security relied on material and procedural features rather than pictorial engraving. A prominent watermark displaying the value in both Arabic and Roman numerals, multiple blind embossed seals, and hand-applied serial numbers and signatures formed the core anti-counterfeiting measures. These elements illustrate an advanced, yet still pre-industrial, approach to security printing at the beginning of the nineteenth century. Read more →

Uruguay 1887 - Banco Nacional de la Republica Oriental del Uruguay 20 Centesimos Issued Note Serial A029393 (Pick A88a)

The Banco Nacional operated as a principal instrument of monetary stabilization in late nineteenth-century Uruguay, issuing notes convertible into metallic reserves within a structured commercial banking system. The 20 Centesimos denomination occupied the lower fractional tier of the emission structure, facilitating everyday transactions while maintaining formal engraved security features equal in sophistication to higher denominations. Read more →