RARE BANK OF ENGLAND £500 NOTE FETCHES HAMMER PRICE OF £30,000 AT NOONANS

An extremely rare £500 Bank of England note - one of only four examples known to exist - signed by Cyril P. Mahon and dated 15 December 1925 sold for a hammer price of £30,000 in the auction of British and Irish Banknotes on Wednesday & Thursday, October 15 & 16, 2025, at Noonans Mayfair (16 Bolton Street). It had been estimated to fetch £24,000-26,000 [lot 268]. 

It was one of several Bank of England notes that sold well. Others included a unique Bank of England £5 note from the Birmingham branch of the Bank of England, dated 5 May 1892 which sold for a hammer price of £24,000 [Lot 224]. While two from the Newcastle-upon-Tyne Branch included an incredibly rare £50 from September 1931 that achieved a hammer price of £14,000 against an estimate of £8,000-10,000 – this too was one of only four examples known to exist [lot 291] and a rare £5 note from July 1916 fetched a hammer price of £5,000 [lot 231].   

Following the sale, Andrew Pattison, Head of Banknote Department at Noonans commented “The four notes were bought by three different but equally serious collectors of Bank of England notes, which really highlights the strength of the market at the highest level.”  

Comprising almost 1200 lots, this is the department’s largest auction of banknotes hailing purely from the British Isles, the sale also included a very rare £1 banknote from the Ship Bank of Glasgow. Dating from 2 January 1753, it sold for a hammer price of £1,800 and was being sold as part of a special collection, The Boyd Family Collection of Scottish Banknotes that comprised 107 lots [lot 809].

Mr Pattison, noted afterwards: “There was considerable interest and some bidding on the day, but the note was eventually bought by a long-time collector of Scottish banknotes who placed a bid prior to the auction.” 

He added: “The market for true Scottish rarities remains good, and the great story and early date of this note was sure to appeal to several collectors.”