Collection PL

United States 1974 — 1 Dollar Federal Reserve Note, Chicago District (Friedberg 1908-G, GD Block) Paper Jam Error, PMG 45 Choice Extremely Fine

This 1974 1 Dollar Federal Reserve Note from the Chicago District (Friedberg 1908-G, GD Block) presents a distinct Paper Jam Error—an uncommon and revealing production mishap that occurs when the currency paper fails to feed smoothly through the intaglio press or overprint unit. The result is a wrinkled or crumpled section of paper that becomes permanently flattened into the design, often distorting part of the printed image or leaving telltale creases and folds embedded beneath the ink. The Bureau of Engraving and Printing’s multi-stage process involves extremely fine tolerances, with paper sheets passing at high speed through multiple presses—first for back printing, then face, and finally for seals and serials. ... Read more →

Cayman Islands 1974 — Cayman Islands Currency Board 1 Dollar Issued Note (Pick 5e)

This issued one dollar note of the Cayman Islands Currency Board belongs to the long-running series authorized under the Cayman Islands Currency Law of 1974, a framework that formalized the islands’ modern paper currency system while maintaining the Currency Board model of disciplined issuance. Although the note is dated 1974 in the series structure, the PMG label attribution indicates the later printing date as not dated 1985, reflecting a practice common to currency board emissions: a stable design and legal base date, paired with later printings as replacement and demand required during successive administrative terms. The obverse is built around a deliberately conservative composition typical of late twentieth century Thomas De La Rue and Company Limited output for British overseas territories. ... Read more →

Cayman Islands 1974 — Cayman Islands Currency Board 1 Dollar Issued Note (Pick 5d)

This issued one dollar note of the Cayman Islands Currency Board represents a later printing of the design authorized under the Cayman Islands Currency Law of 1974, with the PMG label attributing the production to a not dated 1985 printing. This practice reflects the operational model of currency board systems, where a fixed legal framework and stable design were retained while notes were printed in successive batches to meet circulation demand under changing administrative oversight. The obverse follows a restrained and highly structured layout characteristic of Thomas De La Rue and Company Limited’s work for British overseas territories during the late twentieth century. ... Read more →

Cayman Islands 1974 — Cayman Islands Currency Board 1 Dollar Specimen with Red Overprint (Pick 5as)

This specimen note represents the one dollar denomination prepared for the Cayman Islands Currency Board under the Cayman Islands Currency Law of 1974 and was printed by Thomas De La Rue and Company Limited, with the PMG label attributing the production to a not dated 1981 printing. It was produced as a presentation and reference specimen and was never intended for public circulation, reflecting an earlier administrative phase within the Currency Board’s handling of the 1974 series. The defining invalidation on this example is a single bold red diagonal SPECIMEN overprint applied across the face of the note. ... Read more →

Cayman Islands 1974 — Cayman Islands Currency Board 1 Dollar Specimen with Perforated 'SPECIMEN OF NO VALUE' (Pick 5as)

This specimen note represents the one dollar denomination prepared for the Cayman Islands Currency Board under the Cayman Islands Currency Law of 1974 and was printed by Thomas De La Rue and Company Limited, with the PMG label attributing the production to a not dated 1981 printing. The note was never intended for circulation and instead functioned as terminal archival reference material within the printer and issuing authority control framework. The defining feature of this specimen is a large dot-matrix perforation reading “SPECIMEN OF NO VALUE” applied across the face of the note. ... Read more →

Cayman Islands 1974 — Cayman Islands Currency Board 1 Dollar Specimen with Red Overprint & Oval Stamp (Pick 5bs)

This specimen note represents the one dollar denomination prepared for the Cayman Islands Currency Board under the Cayman Islands Currency Law of 1974 and was printed by Thomas De La Rue and Company Limited, with the PMG label attributing the production to a not dated 1985 printing. It was produced as a controlled reference specimen and permanently invalidated through a combination of overprint, printer-applied control stamps, and physical cancellation. The defining invalidation features consist of a bold red diagonal SPECIMEN overprint across the face, accompanied by two red oval printer control stamps reading “SPECIMEN / DE LA RUE / NO VALUE.” These oval stamps are applied in the standard Thomas De La Rue format used to mark internally controlled specimen material. ... Read more →

Cayman Islands 1974 — Cayman Islands Currency Board 1 Dollar Specimen with Perforated 'SPECIMEN OF NO VALUE' (Pick 5bs)

This specimen note represents the one dollar denomination prepared for the Cayman Islands Currency Board under the Cayman Islands Currency Law of 1974 and was printed by Thomas De La Rue and Company Limited, with the PMG label attributing the production to a not dated 1985 printing. The note was never intended for circulation and instead represents a terminal archival control state retained for record and security reference purposes. The defining feature of this specimen is a large dot-matrix perforation reading “SPECIMEN OF NO VALUE” applied across the face of the note. ... Read more →

Cayman Islands 1974 — Cayman Islands Currency Board 1 Dollar Specimen with Red Overprint (Pick 5s)

This specimen note represents the one dollar denomination prepared for the Cayman Islands Currency Board under the Cayman Islands Currency Law of 1974 and was printed by Thomas De La Rue and Company Limited, with the PMG label attributing the production to a not dated 1985 printing. It was produced as a presentation and institutional reference specimen and was never intended for public circulation. The defining feature of this example is a single bold red diagonal SPECIMEN overprint applied across the face of the note. ... Read more →

Cayman Islands 1974 — Cayman Islands Currency Board 5 Dollars Specimen with Red Overprint & Oval Stamp (Pick 6s)

This five dollar specimen of the Cayman Islands Currency Board belongs to the 1974 design series prepared under the Cayman Islands Currency Law of 1974 and produced by Thomas De La Rue and Company Limited as controlled reference material. It was never intended to function as money. Instead, it documents the fully finalized face and reverse designs of the denomination in a deliberately invalidated form suitable for institutional distribution and printer archive control. ... Read more →

Cayman Islands 1974 — Cayman Islands Currency Board 5 Dollars Specimen with Perforated 'SPECIMEN OF NO VALUE' (Pick 6s, 467/1–A2)

This five dollar Cayman Islands Currency Board specimen is a perforated archival control example of the 1974 series authorized under the Cayman Islands Currency Law of 1974. It preserves the full production design of the denomination while being permanently invalidated by a dot-matrix perforation reading “SPECIMEN OF NO VALUE” across the face, a cancellation method intended for final archival retention rather than for outward-facing specimen distribution. The specimen carries the all-zero serial format with prefix A/1, a configuration reserved exclusively for specimen material and never used on circulation notes. ... Read more →

Cayman Islands 1974 — Cayman Islands Currency Board 5 Dollars Specimen with Perforated 'SPECIMEN OF NO VALUE' (Pick 6s, 467/1–A1)

This five dollar Cayman Islands Currency Board specimen represents a terminal archival control state within the 1974 series prepared under the Cayman Islands Currency Law of 1974. It preserves the full engraved design of the denomination while permanently removing any possibility of monetary use through a large dot-matrix perforation reading “SPECIMEN OF NO VALUE” across the face. This perforated format belongs to a different control philosophy than red-overprint presentation specimens. ... Read more →

Cayman Islands 1974 — Cayman Islands Currency Board 5 Dollars Specimen with Red Overprint & Oval Stamp (Pick 6s)

This five dollar specimen of the Cayman Islands Currency Board belongs to the 1974 design series authorized under the Cayman Islands Currency Law of 1974 and produced by Thomas De La Rue and Company Limited as controlled reference material. It was never intended to circulate. Instead, it preserves the fully finalized engraved design of the denomination in a deliberately invalidated form prepared for institutional distribution and internal printer control. ... Read more →