Spink Slates BoE 1797 £1 #2

On Thursday, Oct. 10, Spink UK will offer Part II of the remarkable Lou Manzi and A. J. Simms Collections of British Banknotes.

One note says it all as regards to the significance of Manzi’s holdings: Bank of England (BoE) £1 dated 2 March 1797. Signed by Abraham Newland it carries serial number 2 (P-170; EPM B200a).

Supreme collectable: Bank of England £1 #2 of 2 March 1797 signed by Abraham Newland (P-170; EPM B200a). In a remarkable PMG-20 Very Fine it will be offered by Spink at their London sale on Oct.10 with an estimate of £50,000-60,000. Image courtesy of Spink, UK.

While pound note number 1 is believed to be still at large, both numbers 3 & 4 are in private collections. As such the impending sale of number 2 is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to acquire a banknote of immense rarity and historical significance.

For many collectors the grade of such a significant piece is irrelevant but it nonetheless comes in a remarkable PMG-20 Very Fine. It carries an estimate of £50,000-60,000 commensurate with BoE pound number 4 realizing $42,256 in Spink’s October 2012 sale.

The note comes accompanied by a letter on Bank of England notepaper dated 1894 from Chief Cashier Horace Bowen assuring a gentleman that “Note No. 2 is undoubtedly genuine.”

Other extreme BoE rarities in the sale include a Thomas Rippon £50 drawn on Manchester and dated 5 May 1832 (P-215; EPM B202a). All Rippon notes are rare with only a few examples of the £50 believed extant most of which come from one find. Graded PMG 25 Very Fine this lot carries an estimate of £20,000-30,000.

Thomas Rippon £50 drawn on Manchester and dated 5 May 1832 (P-215; EPM B202a). It goes to the block graded PMG 25 Very Fine with an estimate of £20,000-30,000. Image courtesy of Spink, UK.

And for those who believe no BoE collection is complete without at least one £1000 there is a Basil Catterns £1000 drawn on London dated 15 November 1933 (P-334; EPM B234). Very few examples of the £1000 remain extant and in PMG 35 Choice Very Fine / Pinholes, this one will go to the block with a £20,000-25,000 estimate.

Delectable £1000 signed by Basil Catterns and drawn on London dated 15 November 1933 (P-334; EPM B234). In PMG 35 Choice Very Fine / Pinholes, the estimate is £20,000-25,000. Image courtesy of Spink, UK.

For those collecting World War I issues, there are numerous Treasury rarities. Typical is a printers’ archival composite essay mounted on board for a proposed issue John Bradbury £1 c. 1914. It comes complete with Britannia and George V (EPM TE4a). This is the EPM plate note, probably the work of Bertram Mackennal. The estimate is £4,000-6,000.

What could have been: printers’ archival composite essay for a proposed John Bradbury £1 c. 1914 (EPM TE4a). This is the EPM plate note probably designed by Bertram Mackennal. The estimate is £4,000-6,000. Image courtesy of Spink, UK.

If that doesn’t light your fire how about an extremely rare Norman Warren-Fisher undated fractional 5 shillings of 1919 (P-355; EPM T27). It comes graded a highly acceptable PMG 35 Choice Very Fine and has a conservative estimate of £6,000-7,000.

Extremely rare Norman Warren-Fisher undated fractional 5 shillings of 1919 (P-355; EPM T27). In PMG 35 Choice Very Fine the estimate is £6,000-7,000. Image courtesy of Spink, UK.

The above details should be checked in the sales catalog available online at www.spink.com. The GBP estimates shown above can be converted to approximate USD values by multiplying by 1.2.

Those wishing to participate in this sale via the Spink Live bidding facility should ensure they are registered on the company’s website well in advance. u

1797 BoE £1 #2 AJ Simms Bank of England Banknotes collection BoE Lou Manzi Spink

Kerry RodgersAuthor