Collection PL

Argentina 1844 - Provincia de Buenos Ayres 5 Pesos Moneda Corriente Issued Note, 1º Febrero 1844, Rosas Confederation Legend, Rosas Signature (Pick S389)

Rojas y Patrón was a central figure in the transformation of Buenos Aires’ financial system. Following the dissolution of the Banco Nacional, he oversaw the establishment and administration of the Casa de Moneda as the primary issuing authority, implementing strict fiscal controls, centralized accounting, and direct treasury oversight. Currency issued under this framework, including this note, reflects a deliberate and structured monetary policy rather than fragmented provincial emission. Read more →

Mauritius 1842 - Mauritius Commercial Bank 10 Dollars / 2 Pounds Sterling Issued & Cancelled (Pick S122a)

Unlike the earlier 1839 $20 design, which only mentioned its sterling equivalent on the front, this issue introduced a red reverse overprint reading 'TWO POUNDS STERLING'. That innovation formally established Mauritius’s dual-currency layout, pairing silver-based dollars with their pound-sterling counterparts - a visual and accounting refinement adopted from 1841 onward. Read more →

Mauritius 1843 - Mauritius Commercial Bank 10 Dollars / 2 Pounds Sterling Remainder (Pick S122r)

By 1843, the design had fully adopted the red reverse overprint 'TWO POUNDS STERLING', creating a clear dual-currency layout that paired locally reckoned dollars with their pound-sterling equivalent for imperial accounting. Earlier designs - such as the 1839 Twenty Dollars note - had printed the sterling value only on the front in black. The adoption of the red reverse panel marked the formal consolidation of Mauritius’s dual-currency monetary system as used throughout the 1840s. Read more →

Argentina 1881 - Banco de la Provincia de Buenos Aires 2 Pesos Oro Proof (Pick S536fp)

The 1883 proof belongs to a short transitional period between the 1881 and 1885 'Pesos Oro' issues, representing the modernization of Argentina’s provincial currency design. During this time, the Banco de la Provincia served as both a provincial and quasi-national financial institution, bridging regional economic autonomy with the emerging central banking structure that would later unify Argentina’s monetary system. Read more →

Argentina 1867 - Banco de Londres y Rio de la Plata 4 Reales Plata Boliviana Proof (Pick S1734p)

Archival proof printed by the American Bank Note Company for the Banco de Londres y Rio de la Plata, dated 1 Enero 1867 and assigned to the Rosario branch. This fractional 4 Reales denomination belongs to the transitional pre-peso period when Argentine provincial banks still operated under the 'Moneda Boliviana' standard inherited from regional trade with Bolivia and Peru. Read more →

Argentina 1871 - Banco de Londres y Rio de la Plata 10 Pesos Rosario No. 000001 Specimen (Pick Unlisted)

A handwritten pencil annotation appears at the upper left margin, consistent with nineteenth century office handling and dating to February 1872. This notation post dates the printed issue date and reflects routine administrative processing rather than later collector intervention. Read more →

Argentina 1884 - El Banco del Chaco 1 Peso Moneda Nacional Oro Serial 05056 (Pick S1566)

Partial issued note of El Banco del Chaco’s 1 Peso Moneda Nacional Oro, dated 1 Octubre 1884 and printed by Bradbury, Wilkinson & Co., London, for the Villa Ocampo branch under the Ley de Bancos Garantidos provincial charter. The vignette centers on an allegory of Agriculture symbolizing prosperity and labor, flanked by a dog and bull for loyalty and strength-one of BWC’s finest small-format engravings for South America. Read more →

Argentina 1884 - El Banco del Chaco 1 Peso Moneda Nacional Oro Serial 15849 (Pick S1566)

This issued example tells a different story from any proof or specimen: it is a true frontier survivor. Villa Ocampo in the 1880s was not a polished banking center-it was a rough agricultural settlement carved out of subtropical forest, isolated by distance, heat, and river routes, where notes like this one lived harsh lives. Paper currency circulated through cattle posts, timber camps, river docks, storehouses, and provincial tax offices. Notes were folded, dampened, traded, paid out in wages, and used until exhaustion. The edge tears, surface wear, and softened engraving on this piece are the direct fingerprints of that real-world circulation. Read more →

Uruguay 1867 - Banco Oriental 10 Pesos = 1 Doblón de Oro Sellado Handwritten Right-Side Signature Serial 55818 Issued Note (Pick S385a)

Cataloged as Pick S385a, this issued note anchors a documented sequence of authorization and signature practices that evolved rapidly during the late 1860s. Serial 55818 serves as the reference point for the original single-signature format from which later dual-signature, transitional, and fully facsimile states emerged. Read more →

Uruguay 1867 - Banco Oriental 10 Pesos = 1 Doblón de Oro Sellado Dual Handwritten Signatures at Left and Right Serial 23286 Issued Note (Pick S385a)

The obverse design is identical to the standard 1867 Banco Oriental issue, featuring allegorical female figures representing Commerce and Abundance at left, the national coat of arms at right, and a prominent central orange guilloche bearing the inscription “UN DOBLÓN DE ORO SELLADO.” This inscription emphasized gold convertibility and was central to public confidence in privately issued paper money during Uruguay’s mid-nineteenth-century monetary development. Read more →

Uruguay 1867 - Banco Oriental 10 Pesos = 1 Doblón de Oro Sellado Centered Handwritten Signature Serial 35345 Issued Note (Pick S385a)

The obverse design remains unchanged from the core 1867 issue, featuring allegorical female figures representing Commerce and Abundance at left, the national coat of arms at right, and a prominent central orange guilloche bearing the inscription “UN DOBLÓN DE ORO SELLADO.” The design emphasizes gold convertibility and reflects American Bank Note Company engraving standards developed for Latin American monetary contracts of the mid-nineteenth century. Read more →

Uruguay 1867 - Banco Oriental 10 Pesos = 1 Doblón de Oro Sellado Facsimile Signature at Right Serial 74487 Issued Note (Pick S385a)

Issued banknote of the Banco Oriental of Uruguay, dated 1 de Agosto de 1867 and printed by the American Bank Note Company in New York. This example represents the final standardized production state of the Banco Oriental 10 Pesos = 1 Doblón de Oro Sellado issue, marking the full transition from manual authorization to mechanically reproduced signatures. Read more →