Collection PL

New South Wales 1865 — Embossed 'ONE HALF PERCENT' Stamp Duty Fiscal Proof Specimen

This archival embossed proof was prepared for the Treasury of the Colony of New South Wales in 1865 as part of the design approval process for official stamp duty revenue paper. The piece displays the crowned colonial arms surrounded by a laurel wreath with the inscription 'ONE HALF PERCENT', executed in colourless embossing and framed by printer’s blue layout guide lines with a printed 'Specimen' designation. Unlike adhesive revenue stamps, this form of fiscal authentication was produced as embossed security paper intended to validate legal and financial documents. ... Read more →

Honduras 1873 — 5 Pesos Treasury Note (Billete de Tesoreria, Comayagua, Unlisted Issue)

Original 5 Pesos Billete de Tesoreria issued by the Republic of Honduras at Comayagua and dated April 20, 1873. The printed text makes it payable to bearer against the national Treasury under the decree of March 18 of the same year, a stop-gap fiscal instrument used in place of scarce coin. Handwritten signatures and multiple official seals are present. ... Read more →

Paraguay 1856 — 2 Reales Tesoro Nacional (Earliest National Paper Money)

Earliest known national paper money of Paraguay — the 2 Reales Tesoro Nacional note issued circa 1856 under President Carlos Antonio Lopez. Printed locally in Asuncion on thin handmade paper, this inaugural emission predates all Pick-listed Paraguayan notes and represents the first attempt by the Treasury to create circulating paper currency. Design elements include the national seal with the lion and liberty cap, ornate perimeter borders, and large denomination numerals at each side. ... Read more →

Russia 1920 — Armed Forces of South Russia 100,000 Rubles Treasury Bill (November Issue, Pick S431c)

Six-percent short-term Treasury bill for 100,000 rubles issued by the Government Treasury of the Armed Forces of South Russia during the final phase of the Russian Civil War. This is the November 15, 1920 payable issue (Pick S431c), printed after General Pyotr Wrangel transferred the White administration to Crimea. The note follows the classical Imperial layout: bilingual Russian–French legends, the double-headed eagle in an ornate oval cartouche at left, and a formal typographic bond structure intended to signal continuity with pre-1917 state finance. ... Read more →

Barbados 1959 — Government of Barbados Treasury Bill, Photographic Proof (Early Design Stage)

This photographic proof records an early design form of a Government of Barbados Treasury Bill prepared under the Treasury Bills (Local) Act of 1922. The proof differs materially in wording, layout, and structure from later issued and specimen Treasury Bills, and represents an earlier design stage within the Barbados treasury bill system. The front displays the full issuer heading “Government of Barbados Treasury Bill” and a legal obligation clause stating payment “to bearer out of the General Revenue and Assets of Barbados.” This formulation is not identical to the wording used on later Treasury Bills and bearer instruments, where the obligation language is more compact and standardized. ... Read more →

Portugal 1799 — Real Erario 20000 Reis Apólice, Original Issue, No Overprint, Lisboa No. 37723

A Portuguese royal-era public debt instrument issued in Lisboa in 1799 under the authority of the Real Erario, denominated 20000 reis and payable to bearer. This document is an apólice, a formal treasury obligation representing state-backed debt issued during a period of administrative continuity in late eighteenth-century Portugal, prior to the political and fiscal disruptions of the nineteenth century. This example belongs to the original issue phase of Portuguese treasury apólices and predates the period commonly associated with the War of the Brothers. ... Read more →