Presenting security printing (213 results)

Austria 1800 - Wiener Stadt Banco 1 Gulden Issued Note (Pick A29a)

Additional security elements include embossed dry stamps, hand-applied serial numbers, and official signatures, all characteristic of early Austrian paper money production. These features reflect a transitional phase in banknote design, positioned between handwritten fiscal instruments and later industrial security printing. Read more →

AustriaIssued Note18001 GuldenPMG 63 Choice Uncirculated Issued NoteBanco-ZettelFiduciary Paper MoneyEarly State CurrencyTypographic BanknoteWiener Stadt BancoHabsburg Monetary SystemNapoleonic Era FinanceEveryday CirculationGaliciaZłoty ReńskiPolish Language TextAustrian Partition of PolandAustria1800PMG 63 Choice UncirculatedPick A29aMuseum Grade

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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 →

AustriaIssued Note180610 GuldenPMG 40 Extremely Fine Issued NoteBanco-ZettelFiduciary Paper MoneyEarly State CurrencyTypographic BanknoteWiener Stadt BancoHabsburg Monetary SystemNapoleonic Wars FinanceMultilingual DenominationImperial AustriaGaliciaZłoty ReńskiPolish Language TextAustrian Partition of PolandAustria1806PMG 40 Extremely FinePick A39aMuseum Grade

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Great Britain 1997 Thomas De La Rue 100 Units Test Note, PMG 66 EPQ Gem Uncirculated

Great Britain 1997 - Thomas De La Rue 100 Units Test Note Portal Watermark

A rare Thomas De La Rue test note, issued as a demonstration piece rather than circulating currency. Dated ND (1997), this 100 Units note was printed to showcase De La Rue’s advanced banknote security design, incorporating microtext, guilloche patterns, and the portal watermark. The obverse features a portrait of Thomas De La Rue with multicolor lathework and the company’s headquarters vignette. Test notes like this were produced for presentations, sales demonstrations, and security trials, not for public issue, and remain highly sought after by collectors. Read more →

Great BritainTest Note1997100 UnitsPMG 66 EPQ Gem Uncirculated Great Britain1997Thomas De La RueTDLRTest NotePMG 66 EPQBanknote PrintingSecurity PrintingPortal Watermark

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2004 Northern Bank £50 Specimen, Pick Unlisted NR126, PMG 63

Ireland - Northern 2004 - Northern Bank £50 Specimen NR126 (Pick Unlisted)

Historically, this specimen represents the final appearance of the pre-robbery layout: De La Rue’s guilloché and microtext design with latent numerals, holographic foil stripe, and complex underprint-hallmarks of early twenty-first-century security printing. Survivors are scarce and serve as reference material for the transition between the withdrawn 2004 and the replacement 2005 series. Graded PMG 63 Choice Uncirculated. Read more →

IrelandSpecimen with Red Overprint & Oval Stamp200450 PoundsPMG 63 Choice Uncirculated Pick UnlistedNR126Northern BankDe La RueSpecimenRed OverprintUnissued NoteSterling50 PoundsNorthern Ireland2004 RobberyIreland2004

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Uruguay 1939 - Banco de la Republica Oriental del Uruguay 50 Pesos Serie C Specimen, Specimen No. 9 (Pick 38bs)

The obverse is organized beneath the commanding title REPUBLICA ORIENTAL DEL URUGUAY, with CINCUENTA PESOS integrated into the lower central portion of the design. The composition is constructed from elaborate geometric security engraving, ornamental borders, repeated denomination devices, and carefully balanced fields of blue and brown printing. The large oval at left accommodates the watermark of Jose Gervasio Artigas, incorporating Uruguay's principal national figure into the physical structure of the paper. Read more →

UruguaySpecimen with Red Overprint and Oval Printer Control Stamps193950 PesosPMG 65 EPQ Specimen50 PesosSerie CSpecimen No 9All Zero Serial NumbersRed SPECIMEN OverprintRed Oval Printer Control StampsTwo Sided Specimen CancellationIndigenous Warrior PortraitFeathered HeaddressJose Gervasio Artigas WatermarkCeremonial Historical ReverseBanco de la Republica Oriental del UruguayThomas De La Rue and Company LimitedIntaglio PrintingSecurity EngravingGuilloche DesignWatermarked PaperMulti Color Security PrintingPrinted Specimen ControlNumbered Institutional SpecimenLondon Security PrintingUruguay Monetary HistoryLaw of 2 January 1939Interwar Monetary SystemState Issued CurrencyInstitutional Reference NoteHigh Value Commercial CurrencySpecimen DistributionBanknote Production HistoryHistoryUruguay193950 PesosPick 38bsPick 38bPMG 65Gem UncirculatedExceptional Paper QualityR8 Extremely RareMuseum Grade

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Uruguay 1939 design authorized for Banco Central del Uruguay in 1967, 50 Pesos Serie D specimen, Specimen No. 2, Pick 42As, with all-zero serial numbers, diagonal red SPECIMEN overprint, red oval Thomas De La Rue printer control stamps, Indigenous warrior portrait, Jose Gervasio Artigas watermark, and historical assembly reverse, certified Paper Money Guaranty 66 Gem Uncirculated Exceptional Paper Quality

Uruguay 1939 (1967 Authorization) - Banco Central del Uruguay 50 Pesos Serie D Specimen, Specimen No. 2 (Pick 42As)

This continuity allowed a well-established security design to remain in use while the legal and administrative authority behind the currency changed. The specimen therefore records more than a later printing of an older type. It documents the transfer of monetary responsibility from the former issuing framework to the Banco Central del Uruguay and the practical reuse of proven Thomas De La Rue plate work during that institutional transition. Read more →

UruguaySpecimen with Red Overprint and Oval Printer Control Stamps193950 PesosPaper Money Guaranty 66 Gem Uncirculated Exceptional Paper Quality Specimen50 PesosSerie DSpecimen No 2All Zero Serial NumbersRed SPECIMEN OverprintRed Oval Printer Control StampsTwo Sided Specimen CancellationIndigenous Warrior PortraitFeathered HeaddressJose Gervasio Artigas WatermarkHistorical Assembly ReverseBanco Central del UruguayBanco de la Republica Oriental del UruguayDepartamento de EmisionThomas De La Rue and Company LimitedIntaglio PrintingSecurity EngravingGuilloche DesignWatermarked PaperMulticolor Security PrintingPrinted Specimen ControlNumbered Institutional SpecimenLondon Security PrintingReused Banknote Plate DesignUruguay Monetary HistoryLaw of 2 January 19391967 Central Bank AuthorizationBanco Central del Uruguay ReissueCentral Bank TransitionInstitutional ContinuityInterwar Banknote DesignPostwar Monetary AdministrationState Issued CurrencyInstitutional Reference NoteBanknote Production HistoryHistoryUruguay1939196750 PesosPick 42AsPick 42APaper Money Guaranty 66Gem UncirculatedExceptional Paper QualityR8 Extremely RareMuseum Grade

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Uruguay 1887 Banco Nacional de la Republica Oriental del Uruguay 20 Centesimos Pick A88a issued note serial A029393 with hand applied signatures and Mercury vignette

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

The obverse presents the seated Mercury allegory at left, symbolizing commerce and circulation, rendered in refined intaglio engraving typical of Waterlow export contracts. At right, the national coat of arms asserts sovereign authority within an ornate guilloche frame. The layered green and black linework demonstrates late Victorian security printing discipline, combining ornamental density with clear denomination hierarchy. Read more →

UruguayIssued Note188720 CentesimosVF (PMG 20 est.) Issued Note20 CentesimosSerial A029393Hand SignedMercury AllegoryGreen Guilloche ReverseWaterlow and SonsBanco Nacional de la Republica Oriental del UruguayLey 25 de Agosto de 1887Uruguay Monetary ReformLate 19th Century BankingUruguay1887Pick A88aMuseum Grade

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Photographic transparency essay showing the Maenad engraving prepared for the 1996 North Macedonia 5000 Denari banknote

North Macedonia 1996 - 5000 Denari Photographic Transparency Essay (Maenad Vignette)

In modern security printing, photographic transparencies were produced after the engraver completed the steel die but before the design was transferred to printing plates. High-contrast film positives were contact-made directly from the engraved source to capture the line structure of the vignette in its pure form. These transparencies allowed designers, engravers, and production engineers to examine every engraved stroke at full scale, confirming tonal balance, line density, and compositional clarity before color separation, plate transfer, and press calibration began. Read more →

North MacedoniaPhotographic Proof19965000 DenariPCGS 63 Choice New Photographic ProofEssayPhotographic TransparencyPre-Press ProofEngraving Stage ProofMaenadMaenad VignetteBanknote EngravingSecurity Printing ProcessDe La RueBanknote Production WorkflowPre-Press MaterialsBanknote Design DevelopmentNorth Macedonia19965000 DenariPCGS 63Choice NewMuseum Grade

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North Macedonia 1996 5000 Denari De La Rue specimen with red SPECIMEN overprint, oval De La Rue NO VALUE stamp, EA0000000 control serial and specimen number 006

North Macedonia 1996 - 5000 Denari Specimen Maenad EA0000000 No. 006 (Pick 19s)

This official printer specimen of the 5000 Denari belongs to the inaugural post-independence banknote series of the Republic of Macedonia, introduced in 1996 by the National Bank of the Republic of Macedonia. The series was produced by Thomas De La Rue & Company Limited of London, whose security printing program established the technical and visual identity of the country’s modern currency. Read more →

North MacedoniaSpecimen with Red Overprint & Oval Stamp19965000 DenariPMG 64 Choice Uncirculated SpecimenRed SPECIMEN OverprintOval De La Rue NO VALUE StampTwin Punch CancelsPrinter SpecimenDe La RueSecurity PrintingPrinter Verification CopyEA0000000 Specimen SerialSpecimen Tracking NumberMaenadMaenad WatermarkClassical Macedonian SculptureNorth Macedonia19965000 DenariPick 19sPMG 64Choice UncirculatedMuseum Grade

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North Macedonia 1996 5000 Denari issued banknote EA5464675 featuring the Maened vignette, graded PMG 66 EPQ

North Macedonia 1996 - 5000 Denari Issued Note EA5464675 Maened (Pick 19a)

The printed structure reflects the full late-twentieth-century De La Rue production methodology. A multi-color offset background establishes the geometric and ornamental framework of the design, over which a finely engraved intaglio key plate provides the principal portrait and denomination elements. This layered printing process produces the raised tactile texture characteristic of intaglio engraving while preserving the color complexity achievable through offset lithography. Additional protective elements include a metallic security thread embedded within the paper, microtext inscriptions, a see-through register that aligns when the note is held to light, and intricate guilloche patterns engineered to resist photographic or digital reproduction. Read more →

North MacedoniaIssued Note19965000 DenariPMG 66 EPQ Issued NoteMaenedMaened WatermarkDe La RueSecurity PrintingIntaglio EngravingMicrotextSecurity ThreadSee-Through RegisterNorth Macedonia19965000 DenariPick 19aPMG 66 EPQGem UncirculatedMuseum Grade

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Engraved vignette die proof of the Golden Mask motif used on the 1996 North Macedonia 500 Denari banknote

North Macedonia 1996 - 500 Denari Vignette Die Proof (Golden Death Mask)

A vignette die proof is printed directly from the engraved steel die before the image is transferred to the working plates used for banknote production. At this stage the engraving is evaluated in isolation from the surrounding design elements of the note. The proof allows the issuing authority and printer to inspect the precision of the burin work, tonal depth, and overall balance of the vignette before it is incorporated into the multi-layer printing structure of the finished banknote. Read more →

North MacedoniaVignette1996500 DenariPCGS 64 PPQ Very Choice New VignetteDie ProofVignette Die ProofGolden Death MaskGolden Mask of TrebenishtaBanknote EngravingEngraving Approval StagePre-Press ProofSecurity PrintingBanknote Production WorkflowDe La RueDe La Rue Engraving DepartmentNorth Macedonia1996500 DenariPick 17aPCGS 64 PPQVery Choice NewMuseum Grade

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North Macedonia 1996 500 Denari specimen with red SPECIMEN overprint, De La Rue NO VALUE stamp, GA0000000 control serial and specimen number 006

North Macedonia 1996 - 500 Denari Specimen Golden Death Mask GA0000000 No. 006 (Pick 17s)

The central motif of the design is the Golden Mask discovered at the archaeological site of Trebeništa near Ohrid. Dating to the 6th century BCE, the funerary mask is one of the most important artifacts associated with the ancient cultures of the Macedonian region. Its stylized facial features and circular hair ornaments translate effectively into engraved linework, making it well suited for both aesthetic and security purposes in banknote design. The same mask appears as the watermark on issued notes, linking the primary vignette with a critical anti-counterfeiting element embedded in the paper. Read more →

North MacedoniaSpecimen with Red Overprint & Oval Stamp1996500 DenariPMG 64 Choice Uncirculated SpecimenRed SPECIMEN OverprintOval De La Rue NO VALUE StampTwin Punch CancelsPrinter SpecimenGolden Death MaskGolden Mask of TrebenishtaWatermarkSecurity PrintingDe La RuePrinter Verification CopySpecimen Control SerialSpecimen Tracking NumberNorth Macedonia1996500 DenariPick 17sPMG 64Choice UncirculatedMuseum Grade

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