Expert Opinion Needed - Australian 19th Century Proof & Specimen Notes.

As a long-term investment I'm not sure - I get the impression this sort of market has its ups and downs, and pre-Federation notes probably have more limited appeal.
That said, I would have thought selling them individually in Australia would be more profitable then selling them as a lot overseas.

Quite possibly so.
It's a pretty well known London based Auctioneer - maybe they cannot be bothered.




That makes sense. I have no knowledge of these notes at all, and thought maybe I was seeing a bargain.

The same auction house recently graded this coin (which I am actively buying at present) as gF, and that is a horrendous mistake in grading.
While I know nothing of banknotes, I can grade Australian predecimal coins fairly accurately.
My first thought was 'hold up.. do they know what they are doing?' - and they do - but they don't know Australian stuff as well as some.


As for the bank notes, they are also doing a similar lot, but of New Zealand notes.
I don't know if I want to spend three hundred hours sitting in front of the screen learning about them and deciding what's what.
That lot will cost several thousand dollars which might be more fun spent on something else.

If there are a few treasures among these notes - I have no idea which ones.
With less than 36 hours left, time is short.

If someone here who really knows their stuff said 'that's a no brainer - grab it' -
I would/will put down 8-12 thousand dollars but with those notes I'm in unfamiliar waters.

The fact that they undervalued a well known florin by over 50% made me stop and look at their Australian stuff closely.

Maybe it'd be safer to invest in premium examples of Commonwealth treasury banknotes, which always seem to get action at auction.

Cheers

I think you're entirely correct about the Australian coin grade, seeing as how that's in your area of expertise.

The notes, however, are something you should steer away from. If you want to spend some good money on classic notes to tuck away, visit your area dealers and inquire as to their stock. You can learn something by doing so, whereas here, you'll just learn an expensive lesson in how not to invest in banknotes.

I agree with Mr T.
Perhaps those to whom you wish to bequeath them to, may do that if their interest in them, is less than the O.P's

Have a telephone chat with Noble Numismatics or Downies to confirm.