Collection

Mexico 1884 – Fábrica de Tunal 1 Peso (Pick Unlisted, ABNC)

Context — Porfiriato industrial finance (1876–1911): In the 1880s, Mexico’s northern mining belt (Durango–Zacatecas–Coahuila) expanded under Porfirio Díaz’s pro-investment policies. Private companies routinely paid workers and contractors with bearer notes redeemable in silver on demand. These instruments sat between payroll scrip and banknotes: fully engraved, serialed, and legally payable al portador en moneda de plata, but issued by corporations rather than chartered banks. ... Read more →

Paraguay 1907 — 100 Pesos with 1912 Dual-Side Overprint (Specimen)

Archival specimen of the 1907 Banco de la República 100 Pesos (base Pick 159) carrying the fiscal overprint 'Emisión del Estado – 11 de Enero de 1912' not only on the face but also on the reverse. This dual-side application is extremely unusual for Paraguayan emergency issues and is absent from the standard Pick 134 state overprints. The reverse bears an additional departmental validation 'Departamento de Hacienda – Junta Fiscalizadora', applied in heavy black ink per the decree of 20 May 1912. ... Read more →

Argentina 1871 — Banco de Londres y Río de la Plata 10 Pesos (Rosario, Specimen #000001)

Specimen of the Banco de Londres y Río de la Plata, dated 10 de Noviembre de 1871, issued for the Rosario branch. Printed by Bradbury, Wilkinson & Co., London, in green ink with intricate guilloche and portrait of General José de San Martín. The note represents the British-owned Banco de Londres’ earliest Rosario issue, bridging Argentina’s Boliviana and Fuertes monetary systems. ... Read more →

Uruguay 1872 — 100 Pesos = 10 Doblones (Specimen)

Archival specimen of the 1872 issue of the Banco de Londres y Río de la Plata, denominated 100 Pesos Nacionales with an explicit equivalence to 10 Doblones in gold. This dual denomination was highly unusual in Latin American numismatics, serving as both a circulating promise and a political declaration of Uruguay’s attempt to stabilize paper currency by anchoring it to a fixed gold standard. The experiment was short-lived: by the late 1870s the peso–doblón equivalence had collapsed, making surviving notes a tangible record of one of Uruguay’s boldest but least sustainable monetary policies. ... Read more →

Barbados 1943 — $100 Front & Back Archival Photograph (Unlisted)

Pair of archival photographs showing both the front and back of an unissued $100 design dated 1943. Produced within British colonial banking workflows, these monochrome prints documented layout, portraits, and border work before (or instead of) any production run. The images preserve the wartime high denomination that never reached circulation, with King George VI portraiture and formal colonial ornament. ... Read more →

Great Britain c.1806–12 — Derby Bank £5 (Proof)

Private-bank proof for Derby Bank, engraved and printed during the early mechanized-engraving era of Perkins & Heath, circa 1806–1812. This design reflects the formative period of British security printing when provincial banks commissioned bespoke copper and early steel plates for limited circulation. The note carries intricate calligraphic text, a bank crest, and the London payable line referencing Samuel Smith & Co., typical of pre-Banking-Act private issues that preceded national standardization. ... Read more →

Italy ND (1868) — Banco di Napoli Fede di Credito 50–200 Lire (Specimen)

Specimen Fede di Credito from the Banco di Napoli, engraved by Bradbury, Wilkinson & Co. during the early years of the unified Kingdom of Italy. The Banco di Napoli traced its roots back to charitable institutions founded in 1539, making it one of Europe’s oldest surviving banks. ... Read more →

Italy 1869 — Credito Agricolo di Bologna 30 Lire (Specimen)

Specimen of the 30 Lire issue from the Credito Agricolo di Bologna, produced by Bradbury, Wilkinson & Co. during the consolidation years of Italian unification. The denomination itself—30 Lire—is highly unusual and appears linked to agricultural credit schemes and rural cooperative lending. ... Read more →

Italy 1866 — Credito Fondiario di Bologna 50 Lire (Specimen)

Specimen proof of the 50 Lire issue from the Credito Fondiario di Bologna, engraved by Bradbury, Wilkinson & Co. and dated 1866. Credito Fondiario institutions specialized in long-term, mortgage-backed lending—a key innovation in Italy’s financial system, providing stability and funding for agricultural and urban development at a time when the new Kingdom was still economically fragmented. ... Read more →

Australia ca.1939 — Commercial Banking Co. of Sydney £5 Travellers Cheque (Photographic Proof)

Photographic proof of a £5 Travellers Cheque prepared for the Commercial Banking Company of Sydney around 1939, mounted on cardstock and annotated at upper margin for archival use. This early pre-war layout marks one of the first generations of CBC traveller’s cheques, preceding the coloured issues of the 1960s. Produced during the late interwar period when secure portable payment instruments were vital for travel within the British Empire, this proof reflects the evolution of Australian financial printing in collaboration with Bradbury Wilkinson & Co., London. ... Read more →

Australia ca.1963 — Commercial Banking Co. of Sydney £5 Travellers Cheque (Photographic Proof)

Photographic proof of a £5 Travellers Cheque for the Commercial Banking Company of Sydney, mounted on cardstock and dated '9/3/63' in pencil at the lower margin. Produced circa 1963 as part of the bank’s internal approval and recordkeeping process for its international traveller’s cheque program. In the mid-20th century, before widespread credit card adoption, traveller’s cheques were the safest form of portable currency for customers abroad. ... Read more →

Australia ca.1963 — Commercial Banking Co. of Sydney £5 Travellers Cheque (Specimen)

Specimen traveller’s cheque for £5 issued by the Commercial Banking Company of Sydney, Limited. Printed in blue and green with the same allegorical vignette of a child with fleece used across the series, embodying the themes of trust, productivity, and growth. The CBC of Sydney was a cornerstone of Australian finance, founded in 1834 and later merging into the National Australia Bank. ... Read more →