Rare Book Monthly

Articles - October - 2019 Issue

U.S., Chinese & Worldwide Banknotes, Scripophily and Security Printing Ephemera to be Offered Thursday, October 10th, 2019

FORT LEE, N.J. –  The October 10th auction by Archives International Auctions will consist of 1178 different lots offered in three sessions beginning with 375 lots of Chinese and Worldwide Banknotes, Coins and Russian Scripophily. The second session features over 249 lots of U.S. Obsolete Banknotes and Security Printing Ephemera highlighted by Part 1 of the Highlands Collection of New Jersey Obsolete Bank and Scrip notes. The third session features U.S. & World Scripophily with 561 lots including an outstanding railroad stock and bond collection of CSX and related railroads with many rarities never seen previously by the collecting community.

 

“We are excited to offer part 1 of the Highlands Collection, an extensive New Jersey Obsolete Banknote collection that has been off the market for over 30 years”, stated Dr. Robert Schwartz, President of Archives International Auctions. “Our current 55th auction will offer 1187 lots of rare and desirable U.S. & Worldwide Banknotes, Scripophily and Security Printing Ephemera with many rare and desirable items seldom offered at auction including items forthe beginner to the advanced collector”.

 

Included in the sale are consignments from numerous estates and longtime collections with many items having never been offered previously at auction. A few of the many World highlights begin with a Commonwealth of Australia, 1918, 10/- Shillings, P-3b rarity; China features over 80 notes with a number of highlights including a Bank of Communications, 1913 $10, P-111As Specimen with only 2 previous auction appearances over the last 10 years; a spectacular and high grade 1905 International Banking Corp., Shanghai Branch $100 Specimen in PMG 65 EPQ is offered and is sure to attract attention as well as numerous issued and specimen Chinese banknotes being offered; An extremely rare Denmark, 1784 Copenhagen, 1 Rigsdaler Courant issued note in Fine to VF condition from the John E. Herzog Collection is offered; France is highlighted by a 1790, Caisse d’Escompte, 200 Livres, P-A24 rarity, also from the Herzog collection and having last been seen at auction in 2001 with no others appearing since; Hong Kong has a number of noteworthy offerings including a spectacular pair of Mercantile Bank of India notes, a 1930, $5 and 1937, $10, both in VF condition; Mexico includes numerous desirable notes including a Banco del Estado de Durango, 1882, 1 Peso, Remainder Banknote Rarity; Russia includes a new find of Imperial Russian Government, 1915 and 1916 Specimen Bonds never offered previously in the U.S.. Hundreds of additional desirable notes are included that should appeal to every level of collector and dealer.

 

Session 2 featuresover 249 lots of U.S. Obsolete Banknotes, National Banknotes, Small and Large Type as well as Security Printing Ephemera and Historic Ephemera. One of the main highlights is a Central Bank of Brooklyn, 1850's Uncut "Santa Claus" Proof Sheet of 4 Notes with no recent record of a sheet being offered with the desirable Santa Vignette in over 10 years; Part 1 of 2 parts of the Highland Collection of New Jersey Obsolete Scrip and Banknotes will debut in the auction. There are over 150 lots in Part 1of the auction, with many lots including multiple items that deserve further research and will offer many surprises for the serious collector and student of New Jersey numismatic history. One of the many highlights of the Highland Collection is an 1837 Issued Newark Whaling, Sealing & Manufacturing Co. 37 1/2 Cent note with a popular whaling vignette; hundred of additional notes from the collection are sure to attract attention. Two different Nevada National Banknotes are offered including a $50, 1929, T-1, Reno National Bank Charter #7038 note; Security Printing Ephemera includes numerous rare items that have been off the market for decades including several very rare and desirable items from the John E. Herzog collection. A rare group of 5 CDV’s photographed by Meserve, all of Civil War Military men including Grant and Sheridan in uniform are included. Session 2 also includes hundreds of additional desirable and rare items that will be of interest to the discriminating collector.

 

The 3rd Session of 561 lots consists of U.S. & World Scripophily, featuring the Stephen Beck Collection of CSX and Predecessor Railroad Bonds and Shares and ends with additional selections from the American Bank Note Commemoratives Inventory of Show & Souvenir Obsolete Banknote and Vignette cards. Some of the many highlights include very possibly one of the first Coca-Cola Share Certificates, a 1919 Specimen Voting Trust Certificate Temporary Stock Certificate. No other earlier Coca-Cola certificates have been found in issued or Specimen condition; 2 different Puerto Rico, 1893 and 1895, Credito y Ahorro Ponceno Sociedad Anonima Specimen Bond rarities; a Historic U.S. Department of the Interior, 1894 Specimen U.S. Federal Cherokee Nation Bond codifying the U.S. Government purchase from the Cherokee tribe the lands in Oklahoma known as the “Cherokee Outlet”; an extremely rare North American Italian Steam Ship Co., 1866 with Red 25cts Imprinted revenue RN-T3; a unique, New York, Twenty Third Street Railway Co., 1889 Specimen Equipment Bond from the ABN Archives; a NY, Staten Island Rail-Road Co., March, 1864 Stock Certificate With William H. Vanderbilt Signature and hundreds of additional stocks and bonds from a large variety of topics from railroads, automobiles, technology, Government, Foreign, mining and dozens of additional topics.

Rare Book Monthly

  • Sotheby’s Geek Week
    14-15 July
    Sotheby’s, July 14: Henry De La Beche. "Awful Changes," 1830. $6,000 to $9,000.
    Sotheby’s, July 15: [Apollo 11]. Flight Plan, Complete Original Printing Signed by Buzz Aldrin. $5,000 to $8,000.
    Sotheby’s, July 15: Thomas Alva Edison. Documents Establishing and Ending the Edison Electric Railway Company. $20,000 to $30,000.
    Sotheby’s, July 15: Richard P. Feynman. Feynman's Lectures on Gravitation 1-16, Including the Original Transcriptions of Lectures 12-16 by Morinigo and Wagner, With Richard Feynman's Manuscript Notations, 1971. $12,000 to $18,000.
    Sotheby’s, July 15: [Apollo 9]. A Group of Manuals and Mission Documents used by Stuart Roosa as a member of the Astronaut Support Crew. $5,000 to $8,000.
    Sotheby’s, July 15: [BYTE: The Small Systems Journal]. A collection of early foundational issues of Byte: The Small Systems Journal, with rare hardcover editions. $5,000 to $8,000.
  • Forum Auctions
    The 10th Anniversary Sale
    Fine Books, Manuscripts and Works on Paper
    July 16, 2026
    Forum, July 16: Inundation papyrus. P.Michael 4, the ‘Inundation papyrus’, a geographical account of the Nile near Canopus, in Greek, remains of two columns from a manuscript scroll on papyrus, Egypt, second century CE. £12,000-18,000
    Forum, July 16: Book of Hours, use of Sarum, manuscript on vellum, 6 full-page miniatures, with famous Middle English inscriptions, Southern Netherlands for the English market, [c.1430]. £30,000-50,000
    Forum, July 16: Qu'ran, Arabic manuscript on burnished, stencilled, and gold-flecked paper, 447ff., Sultanate Gujarat, Ahmadabad, [after 1411 but no later than 1442]. £15,000-20,000
    Forum Auctions
    The 10th Anniversary Sale
    Fine Books, Manuscripts and Works on Paper
    July 16, 2026
    Forum, July 16: Turner (William). A New boke of the natures and properties of all wines that are commonly vsed here in England, rare first edition of the first English book on wine, By William Seres, 1568. £20,000-£30,000
    Forum, July 16: Spenser (Edmund). The Faerie Queene. first edition, Printed [by John Wolfe] for William Ponsonbie, 1590. £30,000-40,000
    Forum, July 16: Shakespeare (William). The Comedie of Errors, extracted from the first folio, Isaac Jaggard and Edward Blount, 1623. £15,000-20,000
    Forum Auctions
    The 10th Anniversary Sale
    Fine Books, Manuscripts and Works on Paper
    July 16, 2026
    Forum, July 16: Fleming (Ian). Casino Royale, first edition, signed presentation inscription from the author, 1953. £40,000-60,000
    Forum, July 16: d'Agoty (Jacques-Fabien Gautier). Anatomie de la Tête, first edition, Paris, chez le Sieur Gautier, 1748. £10,000-15,000
    Forum, July 16: Martial Arts.- Lee (Bruce). 'Praying Mantis style' Kung Fu book, containing numerous annotations, diagrams and graphs in Bruce Lee's hand, c. 1960. £50,000-70,000
    Forum Auctions
    The 10th Anniversary Sale
    Fine Books, Manuscripts and Works on Paper
    July 16, 2026
    Forum, July 16: Warre (Capt. Henry James). Sketches in North America and the Oregon Territory, first edition, rare hand-coloured issue, 1848. £30,000-40,000
    Forum, July 16: Norie (John William). The Marine Atlas, or Seaman's Complete Pilot for all the principal places in the known world..., 1826. £30,000-50,000
    Forum, July 16: Mao Tse-tung.- Kim Il-sung.-[Note book for visitors from China to Korea], signed by Mao and Kim, [Beijing, 1954]. £10,000-15,000

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