Experts say it is the only one of its kind in private hands
A rare £10 note issued by the Bank of England is expected to sell for a £26,000 at auction. Dating back to 1895, the note is believed to be the only example of its kind still held in private hands. At the time of issue, £10 would have bought much more than it does today.
“Late Victorian Bank of England notes are incredibly rare, and this £10 signed by the Chief Cashier, Horace Bowen, is likely the only surviving example of this denomination in private hands,” expert Andrew Pattison said. “It represented a very large sum of money at the time of issue – around £1,300.
“This was several months wages for many people, and it is therefore likely that most people would have gone through life never even seeing a note like this.”
A £5 note is also on sale for £22,000. It was issued by the Birmingham branch of the Bank of England in 1856. Mr Pattison said: “In 1855, the Bank of England decided to update the design of their notes and bring in larger, sharper and more secure version of the classic black and white design that had been in service for more than a century.
“This incredible note represents one of the first of the newly updated design and is even more incredible for being issued in Birmingham. Most notes of the era were issued from the head office in London, and this is believed to be the only Birmingham example in private hands. The updated design was only modernised exactly 100 years later in 1956.”
A rare £2 note issued by the Bank of England in 1788 is for sale at £16,000. Mr Pattison added: “This is a fascinating note that dates back to the French Revolutionary Wars at the close of the 18th century. The Bank of England was forced to begin issuing paper money in small denominations of £1 and £2 in order to finance the wars with France and this is one such note. It is a £2 of 1798 and the condition is so exceptional that we have no hesitation that it is among the finest in private hands.”
The sale also includes some very rare Irish banknotes such as a Bank of Ireland £1 note that was issued in Newry, Dublin, and Armagh in 1831. This rare discovery is estimated to fetch £10,000, and is a note which was known to exist, but none of which had ever been seen.
The sale is at Noonans, London on 25 March.
