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Auction: CSS41 - The Numismatic Collectors' Series sale
Lot: 1545

People's Bank of China, a display folder containing 3 pairs of hand painted essays of proposed designs for the first series, c.1948-1949, the essays are painted on card and each side mounted in the official disply folder with the text: 'People's Currency Reference Designs', 'Jing Hua Printing Company, Shanghai Branch Design', 'Obverse Three Pieces, Reverse Three Pieces',

The first pair:

Obv: dark blue border on pinkish underprint, steam locomotive passing by factories, squares written on the obverse presumably for the Chinese bank title and serial numbers.

Rev: deep purple, only the right half drawn presumably because the left side is the mirror image.

The second pair:

Obv: pink-purple borders on yellow underprint, farmer and factory worker walking side by side at centre, factory at lower left and harvesting scene at lower right. The 'Farmer and Factory Worker' is a common theme in the first series but this design was never issued and is the first time seen by the cataloguer

Rev: deep, rich green with only the right half drawn presumably because the left side is the mirror image.

The third pair:

Obv: green borders on yellow underprint, rice planting scene at left, factory workmen at right,

Rev: brown, sailing masted ship at centre, geometric patterns at left and right,
uncirculated, mounted within the printer's offical folder. Each piece has an official red chopmark spanning the essay and the card it is mounted on. Each design is unique and a fascinating group showing some of the earliest work done by the People's Bank of China (3 pairs)

Sold for
HK$260,000