1949 Bank of China 500 Yuan and British North Borneo 25 dollars from Nissan Estate also among June 17 event highlights
DALLAS, Texas (June 3, 2025) — The collection of Alphons Toele, whose assemblage of Dutch banknotes is widely regarded as perhaps the finest to reach the collecting market in the last three decades, will be among the top attractions in Heritage’s HKINF World Paper Money Signature® Auction June 17.
“The trove of Dutch banknotes acquired over the years by Alphons Toele has few, if any, equals,” says Dustin Johnston, Senior Vice President of Numismatics at Heritage Auctions. “He was very meticulous and thorough in the ways in which he went about putting together this collection, with exceptional notes from the Netherlands and Netherlands Indies, with an extraordinary range of signature and date varieties.”
Among the top selections from the collection is a Netherlands Bank 1000 Gulden 19.3.1825 Pick A10 PL119.c AV102.3 PMG Choice Very Fine 35 that is the first and only example graded in the PMG數量報告 of the highest denomination of the “Red Robin” series of 1814-59. Any denomination from the series is coveted by collectors, and this 1000 Gulden is virtually unseen in private hands. This note is an example of the third variety of the type, with values printed instead of handwritten, and is fully issued with manuscript signatures, serial numbers and date. It is one of the rarest and most impressive of all Dutch banknotes extant.
Also from the Toele Collection is a Netherlands Bank 1000 Gulden 15.7.1956 Pick 89 PMG Gem Uncirculated 65 EPQ that is the first Uncirculated 1000 Gulden banknote from its year of issue. Until the emergence of this magnificent note, collecting options were limited to circulated notes that carried grades up to and including About Uncirculated. But that drought ends in this auction, as both Choice and Gem Uncirculated banknotes are offered in this auction. The offered note is the finest presently graded in the PMG數量報告.
A Netherlands Indies Javasche Bank 500 Gulden 32.6.1968 Pick 84s2 PLNI23.7.s1 Specimen PMG Gem Uncirculated 65 EPQ from the Toele Collection is the second-highest denomination of the Javanese Dancers series of the 1930s. This type is exceedingly rare in issued format, while Specimen notes are less elusive; there are only two graded Gem examples, including this piece.
The auction is brimming with 155 lots from the Toele Collection. A finely curated session of 500 Asian and world banknotes is also on offer and one of the best selections offered this year. Among the highlights:
A China People’s Bank of China 500 Yuan 1949 Pick 842a S/M#C282-56 PMG Gem Uncirculated 65 EPQ is a beautiful note, with Exceptional Paper Quality awarded by PMG, that represents the first of five 500 Yuan notes issued in the extensive 1949 People’s Bank series. It is a beautiful, pack-fresh example of this coveted note that features a charming landscape vignette depicting rural life on the front and elaborate guilloche surrounding the denomination in Arabic and Chinese text, as well as “Bank of China” printed in rich green Chinese characters on the back.
Also available is a Low Serial Number 6 British North Borneo Nissan Estate 25 Dollars ND (1942) Pick UNL KNB5 PMG Choice Very Fine 35 that is an extraordinary find, a crowning note from British North Borneo and the entire region. This offering is arguably the scarcest of all British North Borneo $25 notes, each of which is exceptionally rare. After Japanese forces defeated the British and took over control of the colony in 1942, previous British North Borneo Company issues were withdrawn and hastily replaced by these imitation notes issued by the Japanese-owned Nissan Estate. The imitation scrip never were intended to circulate for long, and after approximately five months, they were also withdrawn and replaced by official Japanese Occupation notes. The smaller denominations of $1 and $5 infrequently appear, but the $10 and $25 denominations are quite possibly unique in issued format, according to the specialized guide book of this region. Generating even more demand for the incredible note offered in this auction is its tiny, one-digit serial number.
A gorgeous Palestine Currency Board 10 Pounds 30.9.1929 Pick 9b PMG About Uncirculated 55 EPQ is among the Palestine notes of the British era that are notoriously challenging to obtain in the best of collector grades. Most extant examples are in lesser condition than this incredible 10 Pounds note from 1929, which is a scarcer date of the series. PMG has graded 57 examples of this date, with only two others grading 55 EPQ, with one finer.
A China Asiatic Banking Corporation, Shanghai 100 Taels ND (ca. 1860s) Pick UNL Remainder PCGS Choice About New 58PPQ from the Norman Lin Collection is a high-denomination rarity from the Asiatic Banking Corporation that was famous, but did not last long, suddenly liquidating its assets in 1866, just a few years after its inception. Other than a few issued examples from Ceylon, only remainders and Specimen remain, including this large-format type, for which the demand only grows because it is a higher denomination prepared for the Shanghai branch.
From the same collection comes a Hong Kong Hongkong & Shanghai Banking Corporation 1 Dollar 30.6.1879 Pick 113 KNB14 PMG Choice Very Fine 35, which is an exceptional example of the initial denomination of the HSBC series of 1867 to 1893. Any issued banknote from Hong Kong of this era — virtually all have been redeemed, exchanged, lost or destroyed — is a prize to numismatic collectors; this specific variety was issued for only a few months in 1879, and was supplanted by new notes beginning in 1884. This example is tied with four others at this grade level, with only one higher in the PMG數量報告, and is just the second example ever offered at Heritage Auctions.
One lot that stands out because of its appearance and sheer size is a China Board of Revenue 50 Taels ND (1861-64) Pick A13e S/M#H176 Reissue PMG Very Fine 25 that also arrives at Heritage from the Norman Lin Collection. During the 1850s and 1860s, the Ch’ing Dynasty government issued a series of notes with the denomination in Cash, as well as a Board of Revenue series denominated in Taels, which are scarcer than the Cash notes, and have a slightly wider and larger appearance. This 50 Taels is the highest denomination of this series and is particularly elusive: PMG has graded only 28 examples across all varieties issued in the 1850s and 1860s. Heritage has offered just five examples of this type, but this is the first time Heritage has offered an A13e variety, which is the final variety of this rare type. It is the key type for the series and a very rare, museum-worthy note from the 19th century.
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