April 2026 Hong Kong Auction 17-18 Apr 2026
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5 days 20 hr 38 min
5 days 20 hr 38 min
Stack's Bowers & Ponterio
April 2026 Hong Kong Auction 17-18 Apr 2026
April 2026 Hong Kong Auction 17-18 Apr 2026
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- A Historically Significant Yokohama Branch $25 Specimen, 1870
JAPAN. Hong Kong & Shanghai Banking Corporation. 25 Dollars, Yokohama. ND (ca. 1870). P-S254s. Specimen. PMG Choice Uncirculated 64.
Specimen in rose-red & grey-black, the back grey-brown. Arms at centre; lathework borders containing English inscriptions; Japanese inscriptions in a darker overprint; denomination in underprint; of similar style to the issue of 1866. The engraved central panel reading 'Promises to pay the Bearer on Demand at its Office here TWENTY FIVE DOLLARS or the equivalent in the Currency of the Island, value received.' This type printed on plain unwatermarked banknote paper, by Ashby & Co, London, with a red overprint in the margins on the front at left and right. A black 'CANCELLED' stamp within an oval in black is seen at the lower right.
An exceedingly rare type, believed to be the sole example in private hands, with the only known example retained in the bank's institutional archive. An absolutely magnificent and important note. Early paper money from foreign banks in Japan is exceedingly rare, including that of the New Oriental Banking Corporation, which is rare. For a major and heavily collected institution such as HSBC, demand far outweighs supply. It is also important to note that this is the iconic, almost mythical $25 denomination, which is rarely available from any of the bank's branches.
The importance of this note cannot be overstated. Japan emerged from its self-imposed isolation in 1854, following the Treaty of Kanagawa during the late Edo period, which ultimately led to the Meiji Restoration in 1868. HSBC was quick to move into Japan, opening its first office in Yokohama in 1866, followed by offices in other trading ports such as Osaka, Kobe, and Nagasaki.
Joe Cribb, in 'Money in the Bank,' provides further background information (paraphrased for clarity):
The first notes issued by HSBC outside its founding cities of Shanghai and Hong Kong were from its Yokohama branch in 1866. The famous Hong Kong '$25' overprinted Yokohama dated 2nd July 1866 (shown on page 167) is from this issue and was signed by Robt Brett, who was the Manager of the Bank's Yokohama Branch. In 1870, a separate issue was made specifically for Yokohama, and the note offered in this lot is part of this series. A curious fact is that the words 'in the Currency of the Island [Hong Kong]' were still left in the central panel of this note, a curious and seldom-seen mistake by the printer.
A once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for collectors of Japan, HSBC, or world-class rarities. Not to be missed and of the greatest importance. THE SOLE EXAMPLE GRADED BY PMG. PMG Comments "Stamp Cancelled, Previously Mounted."
Estimate: 60000 - 80000
JAPAN. Hong Kong & Shanghai Banking Corporation. 25 Dollars, Yokohama. ND (ca. 1870). P-S254s. Specimen. PMG Choice Uncirculated 64.
Specimen in rose-red & grey-black, the back grey-brown. Arms at centre; lathework borders containing English inscriptions; Japanese inscriptions in a darker overprint; denomination in underprint; of similar style to the issue of 1866. The engraved central panel reading 'Promises to pay the Bearer on Demand at its Office here TWENTY FIVE DOLLARS or the equivalent in the Currency of the Island, value received.' This type printed on plain unwatermarked banknote paper, by Ashby & Co, London, with a red overprint in the margins on the front at left and right. A black 'CANCELLED' stamp within an oval in black is seen at the lower right.
An exceedingly rare type, believed to be the sole example in private hands, with the only known example retained in the bank's institutional archive. An absolutely magnificent and important note. Early paper money from foreign banks in Japan is exceedingly rare, including that of the New Oriental Banking Corporation, which is rare. For a major and heavily collected institution such as HSBC, demand far outweighs supply. It is also important to note that this is the iconic, almost mythical $25 denomination, which is rarely available from any of the bank's branches.
The importance of this note cannot be overstated. Japan emerged from its self-imposed isolation in 1854, following the Treaty of Kanagawa during the late Edo period, which ultimately led to the Meiji Restoration in 1868. HSBC was quick to move into Japan, opening its first office in Yokohama in 1866, followed by offices in other trading ports such as Osaka, Kobe, and Nagasaki.
Joe Cribb, in 'Money in the Bank,' provides further background information (paraphrased for clarity):
The first notes issued by HSBC outside its founding cities of Shanghai and Hong Kong were from its Yokohama branch in 1866. The famous Hong Kong '$25' overprinted Yokohama dated 2nd July 1866 (shown on page 167) is from this issue and was signed by Robt Brett, who was the Manager of the Bank's Yokohama Branch. In 1870, a separate issue was made specifically for Yokohama, and the note offered in this lot is part of this series. A curious fact is that the words 'in the Currency of the Island [Hong Kong]' were still left in the central panel of this note, a curious and seldom-seen mistake by the printer.
A once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for collectors of Japan, HSBC, or world-class rarities. Not to be missed and of the greatest importance. THE SOLE EXAMPLE GRADED BY PMG. PMG Comments "Stamp Cancelled, Previously Mounted."
Estimate: 60000 - 80000