Collection PL

Australia 1880–1910 - Commercial Bank of Australia £100 Specimen (Pick Unlisted)

This specimen carries prefix A1, placing it within the earliest control sequence (A1–A500). Evidence indicates that issued £100 notes were fully redeemed and destroyed, as high-denomination colonial notes typically had short life spans, strict redemption procedures, and low survival rates due to institutional consolidation. The perforated 'BW & Co LONDON' cancellation and printer annotations confirm that this example was withdrawn from production and preserved exclusively for archival or approval purposes. Read more →

Australia 1879–1903 - Federal Bank of Australia, Limited £1 Sydney Specimen (Pick Unlisted)

The Federal Bank of Australia commenced operations in 1881 and expanded aggressively during the speculative land-boom years of the late nineteenth century. Its collapse during the catastrophic banking crisis of 1893 resulted in the rapid liquidation of assets and the withdrawal, redemption, and destruction of nearly all circulating notes. As a consequence, surviving material associated with the bank is almost entirely confined to printer’s proofs, archival specimens, and presentation examples retained outside Australia. Read more →

China 1915 - South Sinkiang Border Defence Headquarters 1 Tael Textile Emergency Issue (Pick Unlisted)

At the center of the design appears a radiating sun emblem enclosing Chinese characters identifying the issuing authority. Surrounding ornamental frames incorporate geometric and vegetal motifs that draw from both Han Chinese and Islamic decorative traditions. This hybrid visual language reflects the multiethnic administrative environment of southern Sinkiang, where monetary instruments had to function across linguistic and cultural boundaries. Inscriptions appear in both Chinese and Uyghur or Chagatai script, reinforcing the note’s official status within a bilingual bureaucratic system. Read more →

China 1918 - Xinjiang Textile Emergency Currency Printed on Red Cloth, Local Authority Issue (Pick Unlisted)

Textile emergency currency of this type was issued as functional money for everyday transactions, provisioning, and local settlement in environments where paper currency was unavailable or impractical. Once monetary conditions stabilized, such notes were typically withdrawn and destroyed, accounting for their extremely low survival rate. Read more →

China 1920 - Xinjiang Textile Emergency Currency Printed on Red Cloth, Local Authority Issue (Pick Unlisted)

The note was issued as functional money, not as symbolic or ceremonial material. Textile currency of this type was intended for everyday transactions, provisioning, and local settlement in environments where paper currency was unavailable or impractical. Once monetary conditions stabilized, such notes were typically withdrawn and destroyed, resulting in extremely low survival rates. Read more →

China 1921 - Xinjiang Textile Emergency Currency Printed on Red Cloth with Sun Emblem (Pick Unlisted)

Textile emergency currency of this type was issued as functional money for everyday transactions, provisioning, and local settlement in environments where conventional paper currency was unavailable or impractical. Once monetary conditions stabilized and centralized systems expanded, such cloth notes were withdrawn and destroyed, resulting in extremely low survival rates. Read more →

China 1922 - Xinjiang Textile Emergency Currency Printed on Red Cloth, Local Authority Issue (Pick Unlisted)

Textile emergency currency of this type was issued as functional money for everyday transactions, provisioning, and local settlement. Once monetary conditions stabilized, such notes were routinely withdrawn and destroyed, accounting for their extreme scarcity today. Read more →

New Zealand 1913 - Bank of New Zealand £5 Orange Multi-Serial Approval Specimen (Pick S192ms)

A numbered approval specimen of the Bank of New Zealand £5 Orange design, printed by Bradbury Wilkinson & Co., London, circa 1913. Though derived from the original 1895 S192 plate, this example bears two distinct serial numbers (286901 and 296900), identifying it as a multi-serial approval specimen drawn from the opening and closing positions of a controlled production range. Such pieces were created for printer audit, plate verification, and contractual record-keeping rather than circulation. PMG catalogs this variant as Pick S192ms. Read more →

Australia 1880-1889 - Commercial Banking Company of Sydney Limited £5 with Serial Prefix SPECIMEN (Pick Unlisted, MVR4a)

A printer-issued £5 SPECIMEN prepared by Bradbury, Wilkinson & Co. for the Commercial Banking Company of Sydney Limited, dating to the late 1880s production window (ND 1880–1889), and bearing live serial numbers rather than zero or placeholder prefixes. This piece represents an internal control or approval specimen drawn from a numbered production sequence, distinct from margin-heavy proof impressions or display specimens. Read more →

Australia 1900 - Bank of New South Wales £20 Sydney Circular Note Specimen (Pick Unlisted)

The draft is drawn on The Bank of New South Wales at 29 Threadneedle Street, E.C., London. A printed instruction states that the draft should be signed in the presence of the banker cashing it, providing an additional identification and control step at the moment of payment. The reverse also retains the pale blue border and clearly reveals the large institutional watermark and surrounding ornamental watermark structure through the paper. Read more →

Mauritius 1839 - Mauritius Commercial Bank 20 Dollars / 4 Pounds Sterling Issued & Cancelled Note (Pick S125)

Rarity is severe. PMG census lists only 15 total graded examples for Pick S125 across all grades and subtypes. Surviving raw pieces in private hands and institutions likely number only a handful more. Combining these yields an estimated total population of approximately <10 extant issued-and-cancelled examples in all conditions, placing the type squarely in the R8 range of rarity. As an intact, fully issued, pre-1840 Mauritius note from the formative period of the island’s banking history, this piece stands as a museum-grade cornerstone for early Indian Ocean finance and colonial economic studies. Read more →

Australia 1890 - Bank of New South Wales £10 Brisbane Circular Note Specimen (Pick Unlisted)

The reverse is fully printed as a blank demand draft and forms the second working part of the circular-note system. It is drawn on The Bank of New South Wales, Old Broad St., London, and provides for payment "On demand" to the order of the named party, repeating the value as £10 Stg. and "TEN POUNDS Sterling value received." Blank fields were provided for place and date, again using the printed "18__" date format. Read more →