Sorry! This 1974 5 Dollar Type 3a Specimen Note Serial #33 Uncirculated has sold.

1974 5 Dollar Type 3a Specimen Note Serial #33 Uncirculated

Signatures: Phillips / Wheeler

Front: Sir Joseph Banks at right

Back: Caroline Chisolm at left

Period on Issue: 1974

Mintage: Unknown


This is one of the rarest Australian paper $5 notes ever printed.

Nearly all specimen banknotes are produced to assist bank staff, intending migrants & tourists in identifying Australia’s paper money. Barring the incidence of theft, notes issued to public authorities hardly ever make their way onto the collector market.

Only a tiny number of specimen notes were produced solely as presentation pieces to dignitaries.

As involvement with the design & distribution of a national currency would be a true highlight of one’s lifetime; one would expect that presented specimen notes would not be parted with lightly. The very few specimen banknotes that are made available to collectors are always very ardently sought, as much for their historical importance as their rarity & exclusivity.

Reasons Why the Type 3 Decimal Specimen Notes Are Important:

1.    They introduce the $50 denomination for the very first time;

2.     They were the first Australian notes to have the “Commonwealth of Australia” legend replaced with the new “Australia” legend;

3.    The lower denominations (apart from the $50 note) were the last of their type to feature the Gothic style of serial numbering.

The Introduction of the $50 Note

Was released to the general public on October 9th, 1973. An interesting fact is that prior to the introduction of the $50 note, RBA sources quoted that the value of the $20 notes in circulation was now 46% of the total value of notes in circulation, compared with about 26% at the date of decimal currency being introduced. The introduction of the $50 note was intended to facilitate larger business transactions, thus reducing the number of notes needed for a large transaction.

The Change from “Commonwealth of Australia” to “Australia”

The first notes to appear with the “Australia” legend were the $50 notes, issued October 9th, 1973. The last denomination released with the “Australia” legend were the $5 notes; seen September 27th, 1974. This change was brought about by the Whitlam Government, and can be seen as a tangible expression of Whitlam’s desire to see Australian move “towards a more independent stance” in international affairs. As with many of the other broader governmental reforms instituted by the Whitlam Government, this seemingly minor change did elicit a strong response among the general public. In fact, the Liberal government of Malcolm Fraser reconsidered the legend early in 1977, eventually deciding to retain the change, for cost and consistency reasons.

The Introduction of the OCR-B Serial Number Font

The first lower denomination issued with the OCR-B serial font were the R86b Notes (OCR-B Centre Thread), issued September 29th, 1976. The first $50 notes with the OCR-B serials were issued in July 1988.

Current Market Availability and Market Values

There has been no less than 16 different Type 3 specimen notes (with the Phillips Randall signature combination) offered up for sale via auction throughout 2014. Of those 16 notes, 7 actually sold - those notes made between $3,600 and $4,700 apiece. It is worth noting that all of the remaining notes had pre-sale estimates ranging between $5,000 and $7,000 each. The sole remaining note that had a pre-sale estimate of $3,000 and yet didn't sell, showed many signs of having been handled. At the peak of the previous banknote market, single Type 3 specimen notes were bringing more than $20,000 each.

I believe that at this price, this note offers excellent value for money.

SKU: 209018

Browse our catalog of Fifty Dollar Notes below:

Coin Name Reverse Obverse Price Status
1973 $50 Note Run of 4 Phillips/Wheeler R505 good EF 1973 $50 Note Run of 4 Phillips/Wheeler R505 good EF 1973 $50 Note Run of 4 Phillips/Wheeler R505 good EF $425.00 Available Now View Product
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1979 $50 Note Knight/Stone R507 Uncirculated 1979 $50 Note Knight/Stone R507 Uncirculated 1979 $50 Note Knight/Stone R507 Uncirculated $275.00 Available Now View Product
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1983 $50 Note Johnston/Stone R508 Uncirculated 1983 $50 Note Johnston/Stone R508 Uncirculated 1983 $50 Note Johnston/Stone R508 Uncirculated $250.00 Available Now View Product
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1985 $50 Note Gothic Serials Johnston/Fraser R509A Uncirculated 1985 $50 Note Gothic Serials Johnston/Fraser R509A Uncirculated 1985 $50 Note Gothic Serials Johnston/Fraser R509A Uncirculated $195.00 Available Now View Product
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1991 $50 Note Part Bundle (85 Notes) Fraser/Cole R513 Uncirculated 1991 $50 Note Part Bundle (85 Notes) Fraser/Cole R513 Uncirculated 1991 $50 Note Part Bundle (85 Notes) Fraser/Cole R513 Uncirculated $6,500.00 Available Now View Product
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1993 $50 Note FAA Serials Fraser/Evans R515aF Uncirculated 1993 $50 Note FAA Serials Fraser/Evans R515aF Uncirculated 1993 $50 Note FAA Serials Fraser/Evans R515aF Uncirculated $195.00 Available Now View Product
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1993 $50 Note Fraser/Evans R515 Uncirculated 1993 $50 Note Fraser/Evans R515 Uncirculated 1993 $50 Note Fraser/Evans R515 Uncirculated $125.00 Available Now View Product
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1994 $50 Note FAB Last Prefix Fraser/Evans R515L Uncirculated 1994 $50 Note FAB Last Prefix Fraser/Evans R515L Uncirculated 1994 $50 Note FAB Last Prefix Fraser/Evans R515L Uncirculated $295.00 Available Now View Product
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Australian Paper $50 Note Issued 1973 ~ 1995 Great Condition Australian Paper $50 Note Issued 1973 ~ 1995 Great Condition Australian Paper $50 Note Issued 1973 ~ 1995 Great Condition $75.00 Available Now View Product
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1973 $50 Note Phillips/Wheeler R505 Uncirculated 1973 $50 Note Phillips/Wheeler R505 Uncirculated 1973 $50 Note Phillips/Wheeler R505 Uncirculated $325.00
Last sold for this price on 7/10/2020
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1974 $50 Note YAA First Prefix Phillips/Wheeler R505F Extremely Fine 1974 $50 Note YAA First Prefix Phillips/Wheeler R505F Extremely Fine 1974 $50 Note YAA First Prefix Phillips/Wheeler R505F Extremely Fine $400.00
Last sold for this price on 20/4/2022
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1974 $50 Note YAA First Prefix Phillips/Wheeler R505F Uncirculated 1974 $50 Note YAA First Prefix Phillips/Wheeler R505F Uncirculated 1974 $50 Note YAA First Prefix Phillips/Wheeler R505F Uncirculated $950.00
Last sold for this price on 30/5/2020
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1974 5 Dollar Type 3a Specimen Note Serial #33 Uncirculated 1974 5 Dollar Type 3a Specimen Note Serial #33 Uncirculated 1974 5 Dollar Type 3a Specimen Note Serial #33 Uncirculated $3,850.00
Last sold for this price on 28/6/2021
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1976 $50 Note Consecutive Run of 5 Gothic Centre Knight/Wheeler R506A good EF 1976 $50 Note Consecutive Run of 5 Gothic Centre Knight/Wheeler R506A good EF 1976 $50 Note Consecutive Run of 5 Gothic Centre Knight/Wheeler R506A good EF $495.00
Last sold for this price on 8/3/2024
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1976 $50 Note Gothic Serials Side Thread Knight/Wheeler R506B about Uncirculated 1976 $50 Note Gothic Serials Side Thread Knight/Wheeler R506B about Uncirculated 1976 $50 Note Gothic Serials Side Thread Knight/Wheeler R506B about Uncirculated $116.50
Last sold for this price on 20/9/2020
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1976 $50 Note Gothic Serials Side Thread Knight/Wheeler R506B Uncirculated 1976 $50 Note Gothic Serials Side Thread Knight/Wheeler R506B Uncirculated 1976 $50 Note Gothic Serials Side Thread Knight/Wheeler R506B Uncirculated $295.00
Last sold for this price on 14/12/2023
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1976 $50 Note Trio Gothic Centre Knight/Wheeler R506A good EF 1976 $50 Note Trio Gothic Centre Knight/Wheeler R506A good EF 1976 $50 Note Trio Gothic Centre Knight/Wheeler R506A good EF $295.00
Last sold for this price on 3/12/2023
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1979 $50 Note Run of 4 Knight/Stone R507 good EF 1979 $50 Note Run of 4 Knight/Stone R507 good EF 1979 $50 Note Run of 4 Knight/Stone R507 good EF $395.00
Last sold for this price on 3/12/2023
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1983 $50 Note Johnston/Stone R508 Consecutive Pair about Uncirculated 1983 $50 Note Johnston/Stone R508 Consecutive Pair about Uncirculated 1983 $50 Note Johnston/Stone R508 Consecutive Pair about Uncirculated $175.00
Last sold for this price on 24/8/2023
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1983 $50 Note Johnston/Stone R508F YHJ First Prefix good EF 1983 $50 Note Johnston/Stone R508F YHJ First Prefix good EF 1983 $50 Note Johnston/Stone R508F YHJ First Prefix good EF $240.00
Last sold for this price on 22/7/2020
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1985 $50 Note Gothic Serials Side Thread Johnston/Fraser YXH Last Prefix R509aL good VF 1985 $50 Note Gothic Serials Side Thread Johnston/Fraser YXH Last Prefix R509aL good VF 1985 $50 Note Gothic Serials Side Thread Johnston/Fraser YXH Last Prefix R509aL good VF $191.00
Last sold for this price on 22/12/2020
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1990 $50 Note Fraser/Higgins R512 Uncirculated 1990 $50 Note Fraser/Higgins R512 Uncirculated 1990 $50 Note Fraser/Higgins R512 Uncirculated $250.00
Last sold for this price on 23/10/2021
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1991 $50 Note Fraser/Cole With Plate Letter R513a Uncirculated 1991 $50 Note Fraser/Cole With Plate Letter R513a Uncirculated 1991 $50 Note Fraser/Cole With Plate Letter R513a Uncirculated $145.00
Last sold for this price on 18/11/2022
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1991 $50 Note Fraser/Cole Without Plate Letter R513b Uncirculated 1991 $50 Note Fraser/Cole Without Plate Letter R513b Uncirculated 1991 $50 Note Fraser/Cole Without Plate Letter R513b Uncirculated $100.00
Last sold for this price on 11/12/2023
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1993 $50 Note Bundle of 100 Fraser/Evans R515 Uncirculated 1993 $50 Note Bundle of 100 Fraser/Evans R515 Uncirculated 1993 $50 Note Bundle of 100 Fraser/Evans R515 Uncirculated $7,500.00
Last sold for this price on 3/9/2019
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