The Frank Goon Reference Collection of British Malayan Banknotes
Foreword
Welcome to the catalogue for Part One of the legendary Frank Goon Reference Collection of British Malayan Banknotes. It is difficult to overstate how important the Frank Goon Collection is, but suffice to say that it is the finest private collection of banknotes from the region ever assembled. It contains around 800 individual pieces, several hundred of which are unique, or so rare that they do not appear on the market for generations at a time. The collection also contains many of the finest known examples of dozens of notes, many of which appear in this first auction. It includes notes from the Straits Settlements, Sarawak, British North Borneo, Malaya and British Borneo, Malaysia, Singapore, and Brunei, with each of the three parts of the collection featuring a selection of notes from the aforementioned countries.
In many ways, the Straits Settlements provides the core of the collection. The early private bank notes are astonishingly rare, with only a handful appearing in auctions in a normal year. Frank has around 20 in this first part alone, including several from incredible issue locations such as Malacca and Thaiping. The issued HSBC $10 and Chartered Bank $500 specimen are real highlights. The later government notes are also wonderful, and two notes featuring George V really stand out, though for very different reasons. The 1933 large format specimen for $1000 is simply a handsome and impressive note, with the portrait of the King and the prowling tiger below providing truly iconic images. Issued only two years later, the $5 of 1935 with a PMG grade of 67 EPQ, is remarkable for being the finest known of over 800 graded.
Sarawak and North Borneo are smaller sections, but the quality of what Frank has managed to collect is far beyond imagining. The Sarawak $10 of 1922 is in stupendous grade and is a remarkable survivor, considering its high denomination and the tiny print run. From North Borneo, the most impressive item is arguably the $1 issued in the Nissan Estate during the Second World War. This unassuming little note is likely to be one of only a handful to have survived to bear witness to the traumatic Japanese occupation of the region.
The Malaya section is dominated by the almost mythical proof set of $1, $5 and $10, dated 1939. This important set of notes are the only examples in private hands, and are in many ways the ‘crown jewels’ of the entire collection. Throughout the auction are many wonderful monochrome photographs of designs for notes that were never made. These are generally the only surviving record of these designs, and some of the most beautiful are found in the Malaya and British Borneo section. The loveliest are several De La Rue alternatives to the 1953 designs featuring Elizabeth II. The notes were eventually issued by Bradbury Wilkinson and Waterlow and Sons, but the De La Rue designs would have been every bit as attractive.
The Malaysia, Singapore and Brunei sections are dominated by some incredible examples of printers’ artwork. Many of these ‘essays’ are hand- painted and pasted together, and all of them are of immensely high production value. Most of them have never been offered before, and are stunningly beautiful, not to mention unique! The highlights are probably the pair of Malaysia designs for ’The Central Bank of Malaya’, which never existed. They are some of the earliest designs to feature Tunku Abdul Rahman and the quality is unsurpassed.
This is not only the first part of the Frank Goon Collection, but also the first Noonans Singapore auction. As such, it has been something of an adventure organising the auction and putting together this catalogue. There are many people without whom this auction would not have been possible, so we would like to say thank you to the following:
Jeremy Lee and Hann Boom, among others, who provided invaluable advice while cataloguing the collection.
Sim, Kitty and the other show organisers at the Singapore International Coin Fair, who have made great efforts to accommodate us at every turn.
Colin Blyth and all the graders at PMG who worked so hard on the collection and graded it so efficiently, and to such a high level of quality.
The immensely hard working staff at Noonans, for whom this was a wholly new experience, and often a challenging one.
And finally - and most importantly - Frank Goon himself, for entrusting his collection to Noonans for auction.
All of us at Noonans hope that you enjoy the catalogue, and we are looking forward to seeing many of you in Singapore on 25 March for what will certainly be a memorable occasion.
The very best of luck with your bids.
The Noonans Team
Singapore has always been a personal favourite destination of mine - somewhere I term a magical place to visit. I conducted my first auction there at the New Otani Hotel (presumably not so new any more). I have met such great people in Singapore, many of whom I have been dealing with now for several decades.
First amongst them is Frank, whom I met a full three decades ago in 1993. Frank has been an integral part of my love for Singapore and over the course of my almost annual auctions and visits I hope that I have played an important role in helping him build his collection. I know I have used the expression before but I make no apology for using it again - Frank is the definition of a true gentleman collector. I cannot remember Frank ever quibbling a price and his generosity hosting me and colleagues was always freely given and much enjoyed. Now with these wonderful auctions of his own collection, the wheel has turned full circle. I am sure there is an element of regret in parting with his collection, but I trust that the final process will be as enjoyable as the time spent creating ‘The Frank Goon Reference Collection of the Banknotes of British Malaya’.
The collection itself is a wonder. It clearly shows Frank’s passion for the subject, and really highlights his eye for quality. I was reading the various forewords in Frank’s award-winning book The Banknotes of British Malaya, and was staggered to realise that the book was initially published as far back as 2011. At the time of the first edition, I wrote that the collection was ‘nearing capacity’ as it was becoming increasingly difficult to source new material of a quality to match what was already there. Clearly, I spoke too soon, since a second edition was published in 2015, showing that Frank did indeed manage to track down some wonderful additions to the collection! It is hard to believe that almost a decade on, I am writing another foreword, but this time for Part One of the auction of the ‘Frank Goon Reference Collection of the Banknotes of British Malaya’.
I know Frank feels that, as much as he has a passion for collecting, there must come a time to step back and let other collectors share in this wonderful enthusiasm for history and heritage. From our conversations, I know that the decision to sell has evolved over several years and I fully appreciate it is a wrench to let something go that you have invested so much care and passion in. I hope that this and subsequent catalogues will leave a lasting and affectionate testament to the collection.
In conclusion, I can only reiterate my thanks to Frank, and wish our many hopeful collectors the very best of luck.
Barnaby Faull
Frank Goon
It has been more than 30 years since I started collecting banknotes from my home country and the surrounding region - an area once known as British Malaya. When I began that journey, I don’t think I could have imagined that my collection would grow in size and scope to such an extent that it would merit not one, but two editions of a book - The Banknotes of British Malaya. Neither did I foresee that my collection might one day merit its own dedicated series of auctions. I began attending auctions in the 1990s and recall them as tremendously exciting events with packed rooms and collectors competing furiously for that special note. I especially enjoyed the gasps of the audience at some special hammer price, and look forward being on the other side of the hammer when the first group of my own notes is offered.
I have two reasons for offering the collection at auction now. Firstly, as I wrote in the forewords to both editions of my book, it has become almost impossible to find anything to add to the collection, and to an extent I regard it as complete. Much of the enjoyment for the collector is the act of collecting and I have derived great joy and personal satisfaction in trying to put together the finest and most complete group of these historical and beautiful items. As any collector will know, the thrill of the chase and finding the elusive missing note in a series is a heady experience, and in my case it is important to say that it has truly been a labour of love.
Secondly, I never saw myself as anything other than a custodian for these wonderful pieces of history, and the time has come to pass them on to their next keepers. I have derived a huge amount of pleasure from the acquisition and ownership of my collection. I particularly love the rare and unique archival material, which early on in my collecting journey was looked upon with far less favour than it is today. These pieces tell fascinating stories about notes that were never made, and decisions of central banks and governments that would have lasting implications for many countries. In this first auction there are many designs and photographs of designs for notes that would have been wonderful banknotes, but may not have fitted the ethos of the issuer at the time.
I have been fortunate to be able to travel all over the world in the pursuit of this hobby, and in the course of my collecting I have met a fascinating and diverse collection of characters, many of whom have become good friends. I fondly recall many lunches and dinners where at some stage a particularly interesting note would suddenly be produced and conversation would ebb and flow on the subjects of rarity, style, appeal and significance. My hope is that many of these fellow collectors, as well as many I have never had the good fortune to meet, will be able to get as much enjoyment as I have from my notes. If these auctions manage that, then I will feel my task has reached a happy and indeed logical conclusion.
A few names I would like to mention in particular are the late and much missed Donald Teo and Ray Marshall, each of whom provided me with some of the rarest and most wonderful items in my collection. Thank you to Anthony Tan and Steven Tan, whose assistance and encouragement were invaluable throughout my years as an active collector. I would like to thank Barnaby Faull for his friendship over the years, along with Philip Skingley and Lim Jit Soun, my assistant and friend, with whose help I produced both editions of the book. Thank you also to Lee Tiow Lip, my companion in more recent years, who has been so supportive throughout the difficult decision to finally sell the collection. Finally, thank you to all the Noonans staff for producing a lovely series of catalogues that really showcase my collection, and for coming to Singapore to host the auction here.
To close, I wish all of my fellow collectors the best of luck with their bids, and if ever they feel proud to have a note with ‘Frank Goon Collection’ as provenance I will feel vindicated and delighted in my endeavours as a collector.
Frank Goon February 2023
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