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Colonial Currency, MA, 1740 SILVER BANK Note Five Shillings Contemp. Counterfeit

Currency:USD Category:Coins & Paper Money / Paper Money - Colonials Start Price:8,500.00 USD Estimated At:12,000.00 - 16,000.00 USD
Colonial Currency, MA, 1740 SILVER BANK Note Five Shillings Contemp. Counterfeit
Massachusetts Currency
1740 Massachusetts Note On “The Silver Bank” Five Shillings Contemporary Counterfeit PMG Choice Fine-15
(Massachusetts) Boston. August 1, 1740. The Silver Bank. Five Shillings or Crown. Contemporary Counterfeit. Restorations. PMG net graded Choice Fine-15.
This is an extremely rare 1740 dated note of The Silver Bank, Boston, on Massachusetts. The bank, organized by local merchants, was an important independent measure intended to create greater ease of business. This being amidst some hostility that was at the time being directed by the British Crown, toward their American Colonial brethren. The remarkable Ford-Boyd collection, which featured the largest number of early note types on Massachusetts, did not include even a single example of this denomination and type.

This exact note may very well be the example listed as a Contemporary Counterfeit in Newman, as the plate details seem to bear that out being a bit more crude than the Boyd notes of three other denominations. The paper is of a proper fine-quality laid paper and the signature work is quite sharp. The falsified Countersignature on the back of the issuer, “Isaac Winslow” looks impressive being most prominent in bold brown ink.

This important denomination type features a nice vignette of a “Sailing Skiff with a Man Sailing” at the lower left. The engraved scroll work and lettering are very ornate and attractive. This note is neatly rejoined across the center with some expert archival restoration of about a 1/2” tall horizontal strip above the centerfold area. From the face, this note appears quite bold and sharp in appearance and is quite handsome. The three rich brown falsified signatures are of Andrew Oliver, Edward Hutchinson and James Boutineau at bottom. These are some of the very earliest known notes issued in the Colonial period. They are remarkable bargains in the collector market in today’s world of so many six-figure, million dollars plus, Large Size United States notes. An important Colonial Massachusetts rarity that ranks as a tremendous opportunity in collecting historic American financial and banking history.