Collection PL

Uruguay 1862 - Banco de Londres y Rio de la Plata 100 Pesos Specimen (Pick S245s)

Engraved and printed by Bradbury, Wilkinson & Co. in London, the note reflects the firm’s first major commission for the Rio de la Plata area. The allegorical vignettes-Mercury representing trade and Agriculture symbolizing prosperity-conveyed both British confidence and local ambition. Dense guilloché fields, lathe-turned borders, and watermarked paper illustrate BWC’s early transition from hand-engraved dies to mechanical precision engraving, a security standard that shaped modern banknote production. Read more →

Argentina 1866 - Banco de Londres y Rio de la Plata 1 Real Rosario Type A with Printed Signature Issued Note (PS1731, Bauman SFE 70)

Unlike later engraved security issues produced by specialized banknote printers, the 1866 emission belongs to the earlier typographic tradition of bank vales. The design relies on ornamental typographic borders repeating the word "REAL" around the frame, with the denomination centered within a circular medallion. A large manuscript text panel carries the payment promise and place of issue, emphasizing clarity and immediate recognition in active commercial environments. Read more →

Argentina 1866 - Banco de Londres y Rio de la Plata 1 Real Rosario Type B with Hand Signature Issued Note (PS1731, Bauman SFE 70)

The note belongs to the typographic bank vale tradition that preceded the engraved security banknotes produced by specialized printing houses later in the century. The frame uses ornamental typographic borders repeating the word "REAL," with the denomination centered in a circular medallion. The manuscript payment text and place of issue emphasize functional clarity over decorative imagery. Read more →

Great Britain c.1806–1812 - Derby Bank £5 Proof (Pick Unlisted)

A printer’s proof of a £5 note prepared for the Derby Bank during the formative years of British provincial banking, dating to circa 1806–1812. This piece belongs to the critical transitional period between eighteenth-century handwritten credit instruments and the fully industrialized, security-driven banknote production that would dominate the nineteenth century. Read more →

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

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. Rather than circulating currency in the strict sense, these fede di credito served as deposit receipts payable on demand, functioning as quasi-banknotes that circulated regionally as trusted paper. Read more →

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

No issued examples have been confirmed in the market or institutional records, and this specimen stands as the only known surviving example of the type, making it a cornerstone reference for the series. 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

This piece represents a working design element rather than a standalone artwork. Its direct linkage to the 30 Lire Credito Agricolo note places it within the exact production sequence of that issue, documenting how individual engraved components were created and later assembled into the finished banknote. Read more →

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

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 →

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 →

Austria 1800 - Wiener Stadt Banco 5 Gulden Issued Note (Pick A33)

The note’s design reflects the mature typographic language of the Wiener Stadt Banco. Authority and trust are conveyed through dense calligraphic text, a rigorously symmetrical layout, and clearly articulated denomination panels. Security depended on material and structural features rather than pictorial imagery, including multiple blind embossed seals, hand-applied elements, and a complex watermark system displaying the value in both Arabic and Roman numerals. These measures represent a deliberate, pre-industrial approach to counterfeit deterrence, optimized for a multi-regional empire. Read more →

Austria 1806 - Wiener Stadt Banco 10 Gulden Issued Note (Pick A39a)

Banco-Zettel circulated as compulsory legal tender throughout the Habsburg lands, forming a unified monetary framework for a linguistically and culturally diverse empire. In the Austrian partition of Poland (Galicia), the gulden operated under the established accounting name Złoty Reński and was fully absorbed into local economic practice. The inclusion of Polish-language denomination text on the note was a practical administrative measure, ensuring intelligibility and acceptance among Polish-speaking populations rather than serving a symbolic function. Read more →

Uruguay 1862 - Banco de Londres y Rio de la Plata 100 Pesos Remainder (Pick S245r)

Few notes capture the working side of 19th-century banknote production like this 1862 100 Pesos remainder. Printed by Bradbury, Wilkinson & Co. for the Banco de Londres y Rio de la Plata but never signed or issued, it remains an untouched example of Uruguay’s first major British-engraved currency design. No cancellations, no serials-just the raw presswork as it left London more than 160 years ago. Read more →