Heritage Currency is presenting A Western Gentleman’s Collection of Obsolete Banknotes, open for bidding now and culminating with a live bidding session at 7 PM on Sunday, January 24, exclusively at Currency.HA.com. This collection features over 500 notes from 47 different states and the District of Columbia, with notes of interest to collectors of all budgets.
A highlight of this auction is in fact a three dollar bill – the Boston, MA- Continental Bank $3 Oct. _ 18_ Remainder G6a PMG Choice Uncirculated 63 EPQ. Attractive and always in demand, this note’s main drawing card is its central vignette, The White Bear, engraved by De Witt Clinton Hay and adapted from the art of Felix O.C. Darley. Four fur-clad men in a small boat attempt to fend off an aggressive polar bear rising out of the water, his large paw already on the gunwale; their ship is in the far distance. Hay’s The White Bear vignette, though not specifically historic, is relevant to the period of issue. It was engraved at the time of Henry Grinnell’s expeditions in search of ill-fated John Franklin and his ships lost decades before in the Canadian Arctic wilderness. The portrait at right is that of General Joseph Warren, who died a martyr’s death at the Battle of Bunker Hill/Breed’s Hill in 1775. The state auditor’s die appears at left, indicating that this bank, which was in business from 1860-64 before becoming the Continental National Bank of Boston, operated under the state’s free banking laws.
In addition, this auction features diverse highlights such as:
- St. Paul, MN- Treasurer of Ramsey County $5 18_ Remainder Hewitt C320-D5-2 PMG Gem Uncirculated 66 EPQ
- Jefferson City, MO- Union Military Bond $1 Sep. 20, 1865 Cr. UG21 PMG Very Fine 30
- New York, NY- Merchants Bank in the City of New York $1 Nov. 1, 1862 G130a PMG Very Fine 25
- Wilmington, NC- Bank of Cape Fear $10 18_ as Design 10F Proof PMG Gem Uncirculated 66 EPQ
- Troy, OH- State Bank of Ohio, Miami County Branch $1 May 22, 1862 Wolka 2590-09 PMG About Uncirculated 55
- Salt Lake City, UT- Drovers’ Bank $1 July 1, 1856 G2a Rust 83 PMG Choice Uncirculated 63
- Richmond, VA- Bank of the Commonwealth $5 18_ as G2a J-L BR15-25 Proof PMG Choice Uncirculated 63
Bid on these Obsolete Banknotes at Currency.HA.com.