Baldwin's recent sale of rare coins in Hong Kong impressed with a couple of sales which suggested the numismatic market is a strong one. Chinese silver dollar coins presenting Yuan Shih-Kai and Chu Yu-Pu on their obverses both smashed their estimates.
But it wasn't just Chinese coins which interested bidders - some valuable banknotes were on offer too. Notably amongst these was a Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) 1-Kuan note, issued by Emperor Hong Wu.
 1 Kuan Ming dynasty banknote |
Baldwin's have previously sold another of these for $19,000, but that one was in extraordinarily good condition. This one, with abrasions to the left margin and typical thinning, was given a more modest estimate of $3,000.
But interested parties obviously thought it was worth more than that and the final price doubled expectations with the mulberry paper piece being taken away for $6,000.
Asian notaphily is booming, as became clear in Spink's sale of coins and currency earlier in the year, and it represents a plausible investment opportunity.
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