ColonialCoinsUK

This month has seen the ‘Impossible set’ grow by four notes making a grand total of 15. The new additions are from French Guiana – Banque de la Guyane, Paraguay – the 1870 Argentine Occupation and Suriname – Centrale Bank van Suriname. The fourth addition is from the Bank of Guyana, Guyana for which I have already posted a Journal Entry as it completed the country! These notes cover former British, Dutch, French and Spanish colonies and thus represent some of the fascinating history of South America. I have also finally managed to add some brief information on the ‘bank’ and the representative example for the original notes, which started the Set. Although I still have a few relevant notes to add these will have to be a few at a time. Hopefully, a few more will also be acquired creeping, albeit very slowly, closer to the impossible total whatever that may be.

Just added a $5000 note from the Bank of Guyana to my Impossible Set. As Guyana has only been independent since 1966 the Bank of Guyana has been the only source of currency and therefore Guyana is complete The back of the note shows the typical landscape in Guyana and the national bird – the hoatzin, which I had never heard of. This species seems to be unique in the bird world with blue skin and a fascinating adaption to life in the rain forest meaning it is also referred to as the ‘Stink Bird’! At the moment $5000 is the highest value note issued by Guyana and it was great to be able to get one for the collection, however following the prices being obtained at some recent auctions I expect that overall the smallest available denomination will feature much more

Very unlikely! I think 50 notes would be straightforward as nearly half of them would be current issues, as most countries seem to have had the same 'bank' since the 1920's until now, and therefore should be easy enough . This leaves just 1 or 2 'banks' needed from each country which should also be OK - possibly adding lots of Mexican banks, so 80 notes? Then things start to get really difficult for the next 100 and that's only just getting started - so a long term project

One of the goals for my collection is to put a Set together made up of a note from the Revolutionary Period for each State in Mexico - a total of 30 notes. I think this is achievable, and is proving a great way to learn about the region, and the Set is ticking along nicely. Some States had multiple Banks, for example Yucatan had El Banco Mercantil de Yucatan, El Banco Yucatecco, then El Banco Pennisular Mexicano plus a range of later private, military, state and municipal issues so there is plenty of choice for the 'banks' and denominations which could make up this Set providing some much needed flexibility. This diversity meant that Mexico had 100's of Institutions that issued currency before centralisation of the banking system in 1923 and one note from each would probably be considered 'impossible' - is there already such a collection? I have bought a few group lots, whilst also working on another set , which meant that I have ended up with an increasing number of notes from across Latin American which prompted a quick look at the SCWPM:Specialist Issues catalogue. This has ~50 Bancos listed for Mexico (does not include the later issues), >100 from Argentina, even more for Colombia although for Nicaragua only 4 are mentioned, and then there is the main catalogue which adds even more. As the saying goes 'go big or go home' I decided my 'impossible' banknote set would be one example from each bank/issuing authority for the whole of Central and South America! As an example of every catalogue number is just being silly this Set provides some sort of focus, not much but my justification anyway, as it still needs 1000's of notes. I expect some of the earlier/local issues are probably 'impossible' in their own right and this means there will always be a gap somewhere. As a long time collector of die numbered Victorian coinage (1864-1879) and Napoleonic medals I am no stranger to 'impossible' Sets so adding a 'paper' set to my never to be completed collection seemed like a logical thing to do! So I have started a Signature Set with just a few notes to sort out the format etc. Extra notes and information will be added over the next hundred years or so https://notes.www.collectors-society.com/registry/notes/ViewPersonalCollection.aspx?UserCollectionID=1822&Tab=list

Very unlikely to be chasing revalidations etc as there are lots for the Revolutionary period - almost as many as notes! It seems that whenever a town fell to one side or the other the local bank was the first target to revalidate existing currency or to acquire the printing press to make new notes. When an army abandoned a town taking the printing press with you was a major priority I expect there are contemporary counterfeits about but I haven't seen one - hopefully safe in collections.

My first graded banknote was a 'dos caritos' issued during the Mexican Revolution in Chihuahua and I promised myself that I would not attempt acquiring all the combinations of control letters, dates etc as there are more than a 1000 known. As there is always an exception to every rule I had decided that if some of the interesting varieties appeared cheaply then I would snap them up and this note ticks that box. It is still a 20 pesos note (S537b, M926f) with black scalloped Treasury seal and a new date/control letter combination (6-10-15; MIN-S) which was nice but it was the extra stamp that drew my attention. During the war the fortunes of the various factions embbed and flowed necessitating the issue of new, territory restricted, currency to pay the troops. The easiest way to do this was to revalidate captured existing notes rather than trying to print new ones and this note is an example of this. Postcard depicting Nogales and the US border ca. 1915 (geo-mexico.com). The seal was used from 28 May 1915 in Nogales, a small town in Sonora on the border with the US. The stamp is round, in violet ink, with an eagle in centre and ‘SECRETARIA PARTICULAR DEL GOBERNADOR DEL ESTADO DE SONORA’ around the edge. According to papermoneyofmexico.com this revalidation had nothing to do with Secretario Particular and the stamp was used as it was the only one available, there also seemed to be a shortage of ink as it is also known in green, blue and black suggesting issuing currency was critical and they used what ever was lying about.. Even more interesting are the initials above the MIN-S, these are RM and stand for Remigo Montoya who appears to have been quite a character. As an 'official' currency expert for the neighbouring state of Chihuahua he was arrested just across the border in Tucson, Arizona having been caught stamping $500,000 of potentially counterfeit notes as genuine. During the chaos of war he surprisingly seems to have escaped prison and even retained his tresury job - I am sure the investigation of the counterfitting operation identifying a number of Mexican government officials and influential Sonoran businesman had nothing to do with this. I love it that every coin and note is the chance to learn something new.

Looks like a great reference book, with lots of detail which seems to be lacking for most countries. @Fenntucky Mike I am allergic to writing on books, only just coming to terms with writing on PDF files

HTML has been trial and error but at least it is a start. Something like 'The 12th Denticle's' 1 Peso Coins of The Philippines NGC Set Description being a goal. https://coins.www.collectors-society.com/wcm/CoinCustomSetView.aspx?s=32398 A lot of the PMG sets are very long indeed compared to the NGC coin sets, I am sure many of these can be broken down into smaller sets by printer/name of currency/groups of years if there are big gaps for issued notes etc. Some sets already have these smaller sets in addition to the 100+ 1900-date options! This should be possible for Ukraine?, you may just have to ask PMG nicely

https://notes.www.collectors-society.com/registry/notes/mysets_listing.aspx?PeopleSetID=34594 This year has seen a couple of milestones in my collection, the first dealing with coins and the second banknotes. After more than a decade, I finally managed to complete my NGC Registry Set consisting of the main types of Napoleonic Francs and, much to my surprise, I have also managed to complete my first PMG set, this was much quicker but then it was 5 notes rather than 30 coins! The Set consists of the 5 to 100 pesos notes issued by the Banco de Tamaulipas in Mexico from 1902 to 1914 with all denominations represented by remainders* as these were available in high grades to allow appreciation of the design. My collection also has a 1000 pesos specimen note although it still lacks an example of the 500 pesos note and then there are the notes from earlier and later periods issued in the State, all with fascinating designs and history. You have to start somewhere and Tamaulipas appears to have been it as very few of my Banco Sets corresponding to the other Mexican States (pre and post revolution) have even been started and those, which are actually underway in my collection typically, comprise a single note. Then there is the rest of Central and South America so I have no idea where completed PMG Set No. 2 will come from. * Collecting issued notes by Series, signatories and dates appears to be possible and would make an impressive reference collection but would probably drive me mad. If anyone is considering this, look at the information on ‘papermoneyofmexico.com’ first and then change your mind!

I will probably keep it until I need to spend it, so for now I too will describe it as emergency cash savings

Here in the UK there seems to have been a shortage of £5, £10 and £20 notes from cash machines lately - no idea why? The outcome of this was that I received a £50 note instead! Although some people may be familiar with these they are not something that is in everyday use here at all. I have only had about half a dozen £50 notes in my entire life and that was many years ago when I lived in London. This is one of the new polymer notes which were introduced in 2021 and even has the first AA serial number - so do I keep it or spend it???

I don't think it is a Registry effect at all given the number of participants, although this may be the case for some selected modern issues, I think, like world coins, it is now normal to buy things unseen and from all over the place and grading gives a bit of comfort to the buyer in terms of the state of the note - actual identification of the note is a different matter though I didn't get the my top picks I was after at Katz, I didn't get the 70 that I thought may be possible at a different auction either and funds I was trying to release for the upcoming sale at Heritage are delayed. Plenty of others to choose from though and I even managed to complete a Set - all 5 notes!

I will be watching the Katz auction tomorrow so may pick up a couple if the price is right. The strong dollar is probably playing a part but I think the fact the market seems to have brought out rare notes that have not been seen for a long time is more critical. Graded notes also seem to be achieving a premium and many of the rare notes are being newly graded, and not just those in top grades, but across the whole range. Given coin and medal prices seem to be still going up after quite a few years it wouldn't surprise me if notes follow this pattern - I knew that years ago I should have collected British Colonial notes alongside the coins

Same here, although a 70 is appearing shortly and if the price isn't silly I may just bid so I have one. Personally, as with coins I find the search for new varieties more interesting - I don't have any 70's in metal either

@Fenntucky Mike Congratulations on picking up some great notes and even completing a year set. Pity that some got away though, hopefully it will not be long before they appear again. There has also been lots of Quality and rare Latin American notes recently including those appearing over the next few weeks but prices being achieved have been amazing, I have usually been outbid, sometimes massively, but I have managed to pick up a few 'common' notes though which keeps things ticking over When everything is in Dollars or Euros the low Pound doesn't go very far

@Revenant@Fenntucky Mike So what has Bonezdogg got that you two haven't ?

Fantastic and invaluable information as usual It would be great if catalogues could also include UV images of notes. A similar thing happens with the El Salvador 1983 5 colones (Pick134) where the serial number in Series BJ-BZ fluoresces green under UV light whereas for Series HA-UA the serial number does not! I don't have the UV images How do you scan notes easily at home to get the images????

Some people collect different coin holders, and the different generations within each type of holder, so why not the same for banknotes - you are a pioneer Personally I only have a few PCGS in addition to PMG although I expect a few ICG holders will also appear over time given Latin America's links to Spain, I was a bit surprised I didn't already have any. You seem to be missing the new PMG one with a QR code so you need to submit something quick

I have seen various size and numbers of circle punches, even star shaped punches in addition to cut sections/corners and needle punched words but the square punch seemed to be a bit unusual and it doesn't even leave a nice clean hole! Compared to the others the nearest lion is certainly looking backwards, no doubt wondering what happened

Not only is this another country from Latin America to add to the collection but it attracted me for a couple of reasons. First the cancellation holes are square - I thought that was a bit different as most seem to be round. In my collection I have a Guatemalan 1 peso with Cybele riding a chariot being pulled by two lions whereas this time she seems to have gained a passenger in Mercury, which is no doubt why it now takes four lions to do the hard work! It is no surprise to see Mercury on a banknote as he is the god of commerce however it seems that his chariot is usually pulled by two roosters - I wonder if this is on a banknote anywhere? He has also regained the caduceus from the Mother Goddess.

Smaller gold coins on the way! https://www.herald.co.zw/smaller-gold-coins-set-for-release/

As the UK never joined the Euro it has always just been the Pound - some airport shops allow you to pay with either though

Fascinating - I wasn't even aware that Russian notes circulated in Ukraine. I suppose we do have Scottish and Northern Irish issues circulating alongside the English versions - as I am in the far North the Scottish issues are quite common but my experience is that the further south you go shops etc will not take them as they think they are not real and 'funny money'

Great notes and information as always! I was starting to look at more modern specimen notes for my collection as there are surprising few graded examples out there - now your posts have forced me into it

I also collect Mexican notes and at the moment they are from all over time and place as the variations are immense - I am still finding many unrecorded control letters etc in the Revolutionary issues which is turning into a lifetime rabbit hole but it keeps the mind active. Graded notes are even more of a challenge and, like you, I may have to submit a few to fill in gaps - as some of the Registry Sets have lots of slots and/or have almost impossible notes in them I too can see a few Signature sets on the Horizon Good luck