Collection PL

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

Circular Notes were developed by Thomas Cook and Son as an international payment system designed specifically for travelers. The instrument allowed a holder to pre-purchase value in one country and redeem it abroad through a network of authorized agents, banks, and correspondents. In practical use, the traveler would sign the note upon purchase and present it overseas, where identity would be verified before funds were paid out in local currency. Read more →

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

The proof connects directly with the corresponding Thomas Cook and Son 5 Pounds Travellers Cheque specimen, allowing the proof-stage design record and the finalized specimen-stage cheque to be studied together. The photographic proof preserves the design as a mounted production review image, while the specimen preserves the printed cheque format with red specimen and cancellation markings, reverse payment wording, and the full issued-style presentation structure. Read more →

Great Britain 1923 - Thomas Cook & Son Travellers Cheque 100 Rupees Photographic Proof (Pick Unlisted)

At present, no other photographic proofs of the 100 Rupees Thomas Cook Travellers Cheque from this period are documented in grading census records, auction archives, institutional collections, or published references. No second example has been produced or observed. This establishes the piece as a unique visible example of its specific type. Read more →

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

High-denomination Federal Reserve Notes of this first series circulated little in everyday commerce. Their large value meant that most were held in institutional or interbank use, and the majority were later redeemed and destroyed. Survivors with original paper quality are consequently rare. Certified PMG 30 EPQ Very Fine, this example retains full color, crisp ink detail, and genuine originality-an appealing representative of the moment when America’s new central bank introduced its first generation of notes to the public. Read more →

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

Issued 1907 Banco de la República 100 Pesos note, cataloged as Pick 159 and printed by Waterlow & Sons, London. This is the original, non-overprinted base type from which the later 1912 emergency state issues were created. In its pure issued form, without the later “Emisión del Estado” overprint or the additional Treasury fiscal validation seen on rarer revalidated examples, the note preserves the full Waterlow design as it was intended before Paraguay’s monetary emergency transformed surviving stocks into provisional state currency. Read more →

Italy 1868 - Banco di Napoli Fede di Credito 50–200 Lire Specimen (Pick Unlisted)

Certified ICG AU/UNC 60, this piece preserves original paper texture with light handling only. Surviving examples are rarely encountered, as most fede di credito were redeemed and destroyed. It stands as one of the earliest engraved forms linking Italian unification banking reforms with centuries-old Neapolitan credit practices, bridging medieval traditions and modern note engraving. Read more →

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

Specimen of the 30 Lire issue from the Credito Agricolo della Cassa di Risparmio in Bologna, produced by Bradbury, Wilkinson & Company during the critical early phase of post-unification Italian financial restructuring. The denomination itself-30 Lire-is highly unconventional and appears directly tied to structured agricultural credit mechanisms rather than standard monetary circulation, reflecting targeted rural financing systems implemented in newly unified Italy. 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

Surviving engraved vignette proofs tied to specific issued designs are exceptionally rare, as they were internal production materials not intended for distribution or preservation. Their survival provides a rare and precise view into the construction process of banknote design at the highest level of nineteenth century security printing. Read more →

Italy 1866 - Credito Fondiario di Bologna 50 Lire Specimen (Pick Unlisted)

The note’s oversized layout is striking, with ornate guilloché and multiple coats of arms symbolizing the pre-unification states of Italy. This heraldic display was already becoming obsolete by the 1860s as national identity consolidated, making this design a rare vestige of Italy’s regional past engraved onto its financial instruments. Wide margins, full color, and archival cancellations confirm its specimen status. Read more →

Australia 1963 - Commercial Banking Company of Sydney LIMITED £5 Travellers Cheque Photographic Proof (Pick Unlisted)

The piece captures the final monochrome layout used for the £5 denomination, showing alignment marks, margins, and design placement in photographic negative format. It represents a form of Australian banking ephemera rarely preserved outside institutional archives, bridging the worlds of banknote design, printing technology, and the evolution of financial instruments for international travel. Read more →

Brazil 1963 - Tesouro Nacional, Undated ‘Valor Legal’ Test Proof

This example, graded PCGS 53 PPQ (About New), represents an extremely rare survival of the developmental phase of Brazil’s printing program-an ephemeral but vital record of how the country’s currency evolved typographically before the definitive Cruzeiro issues of the later 1960s. Read more →

Brazil 1963 - Tesouro Nacional, Prefix Test Proof “Estampa 3ª Série 000a”

Graded PCGS 64 Very Choice New, this example provides a rare look into the behind-the-scenes workflow of Brazilian banknote production. While visually minimal, such sheets are indispensable documentation of the practical precision required in government printing offices of the era. Read more →