Collection PL

Australia 1877 - Bradbury, Wilkinson and Company Portrait of Woman for City of Melbourne Bank Limited 20 Pounds Design Intaglio Vignette (Pick Unlisted)

The lower margin carries the Bradbury, Wilkinson & Co. London imprint together with the number 40. Preserved independently from borders, denomination devices, issuer lettering and other elements of the completed note, the vignette allows the engraved portrait to be examined as an individual production component. Read more →

Poland 1994 - 50 Zlotych Remainder (Pick 175ar Miłczak 198a–b)

This example documents a surviving production-stage form of the 1994 50 zlotych issue and provides a direct reference for the Thomas De La Rue printing sequence behind the final circulation note. Read more →

Poland 1994 - 50 Zlotych Discovery AR Prefix Without Overprints Approval Specimen (Pick Unlisted)

Discovery AR-prefix approval specimen of the 50 Zlotych banknote from the 1994 Polish issue, bearing serial number AR0000000. The piece documents a previously unrecorded AR-prefix approval-stage form within the production record of the series. Read more →

Poland 1994 - 50 Zlotych Discovery AR Prefix with Red Overprint and Oval Stamp Specimen (Pick Unlisted)

Discovery AR-prefix red-overprint specimen of the 50 Zlotych banknote from the 1994 Polish issue, bearing serial number AR0000000. The note carries a red diagonal SPECIMEN overprint, paired red oval NO VALUE stamps, round punch cancellations, and De La Rue specimen-control number 005. This AR-prefix form is unrecorded in Milczak and Pick and belongs to the same discovery-level production group as the related AR approval specimen. Read more →

Poland 1994 - 50 Zlotych Discovery AR Prefix Perforated SPECIMEN OF NO VALUE Specimen (Pick Unlisted)

Discovery AR-prefix perforated specimen of the 50 Zlotych banknote from the 1994 Polish issue, bearing serial number AR0000000 and cancelled by the perforated inscription SPECIMEN OF NO VALUE. This AR-prefix form is unrecorded in Milczak and Pick and belongs to the same discovery-level production group as the related AR approval specimen and AR red-overprint specimen. Read more →

New Zealand 1870–1890 - Bank of New Zealand £1 Green Specimen (Pick S191s)

This specimen carries a dual-prefix serial system, with A197001 at left and B047000 at right. These are not circulation serials but internal control numbers applied by Bradbury Wilkinson to track production stages, plate alignment, and archival referencing. The use of two independent serial blocks reflects early control methodology, allowing cross-verification between printing batches and ledger records. This dual-format numbering is a defining feature of early BNZ specimens and distinguishes them from later standardized serial practices. Read more →

Bolivia 1903 - Banco Agricola 5 Bolivianos Front Progressive Proof and Back Proof Pair (Pick S102pp1, S102p2)

Matched printer's proof pair for the Banco Agricola 5 Bolivianos issue of 1903, produced by the American Bank Note Company. The pair preserves both sides of the design at the production stage: a front progressive proof and a separate back proof, together documenting the complete visual program prepared for the denomination. Read more →

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

This color trial specimen represents a pre-issue production stage of the Central Bank of Libya 10 Dinars note introduced in 1971, prepared during the immediate post-monarchy redesign of the national currency. Following the establishment of the Libyan Arab Republic, royal imagery was formally removed and replaced with revolutionary-era symbolism, most prominently the portrait of Omar al-Mukhtar, positioned as a unifying national figure and ideological anchor of the new regime. Read more →

Libya 1971 - Central Bank of Libya Omar al-Mukhtar Intaglio Vignette Proof (Portrait Master for 10 Dinars Issue)

Comparative examination against the issued 10 Dinars portrait reveals subtle but intentional modifications made at later stages of production. Line weights were moderated, highlights broadened, and transitions simplified to reduce plate wear and prevent tonal closure in circulation printing. This vignette thus preserves engraving detail that was deliberately reduced before final release, making it the most complete visual record of the portrait as originally conceived. Read more →

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

At the time of cataloging, no second specimen of the 1971 10 Dinars issue is documented in grading census data, auction archives, institutional collections, or reference literature. Its rarity derives from production-stage scarcity rather than condition, and its significance lies in documenting the final transition from design approval to monetary circulation. Read more →

Portugal 1917 - Banco de Portugal 50 Mil Réis Front Progressive Proof (Pick 110pp1)

The EPQ designation is exceptional at this grade, indicating fully original paper quality and unaltered archival surfaces-critical for proofs that typically show handling or trimming. Only two examples of Pick 110pp1 appear in the PMG census, placing this among the rarest surviving Portuguese progressive proofs. Each intermediate pull was meant to be destroyed once calibration finished; very few escaped the printer’s vaults. This proof documents the engraver’s first successful alignment of the plate and thus predates the issued specimen by a critical production stage. Read more →

Great Britain 1922 - Thomas Cook and Son 5 Pounds Travellers Cheque Photographic Proof (Pick Unlisted)

Photographic proof of the 5 Pounds Travellers Cheque prepared for Thomas Cook and Son in the early 1920s, produced during the post First World War consolidation phase of the firm's international payment system. Mounted on cardstock and preserved as a production-stage reference image, this proof records the engraved face before the finalized specimen form was printed for presentation and control use. Read more →