Staff 'flabbergasted' as banknotes donation handed in to charity shop raises £85,000

The collection, which was stored in albums, was donated in person to the British Heart Foundation’s Home and Fashion store in Edinburgh’s Straiton Retail Park.

After the shop team spotted something special about the collection, its potential significance was recognised and the notes were passed to auction house Noonans, where they went under the hammer on Wednesday, raising £85,860.

Shop manager David McCormack said: “When the donation came into the shop, we all looked through the folders but didn’t know much about the banknotes, so we sent them to our eBay team in Leeds to investigate.

“When we discovered their potential value, we were flabbergasted. It’s incredibly exciting to see a donation received by your shop raise such a significant amount for the charity, and we’re so proud the donor chose to give the collection to us.”

The collection included two hand painted designs for Royal Bank of Scotland notes that were never put into production and an uncirculated note bearing a picture of the young Queen Elizabeth.

Other highlights included an extremely rare 1947 Iraqi 10 Dinars colour trial and a 1961 specimen 100 Riyal note from Saudi Arabia.

Allison Swaine-Hughes, chief commercial officer at the British Heart Foundation, said: "We are absolutely thrilled that this extraordinary collection has raised over £85,860 for British Heart Foundation. We are incredibly grateful to the donor who chose to entrust these remarkable banknotes to us, and to our brilliant shop team in Edinburgh who recognised that there was something very special about this donation.

"It's wonderful to think that a collection generously handed into one of our charity shops can go on to raise such a fantastic amount for lifesaving research. Every pound raised through our shops helps us fund lifesaving research and this will help create a legacy that benefits both collectors and the millions of people affected by cardiovascular disease.”

“This has been a truly special donation and we couldn't be more grateful to everyone who helped turn it into such an incredible result."

One of the designs for the never-used Scottish notes from 1967 included a portrait of Enlightenment-era Scottish industrialist David Dale, as well as a vignette of the University of Glasgow and a statue of Lord Kelvin. Meanwhile the other features Archibald Campbell, 3rd Duke of Argyll, also known as Lord Ilay, as well as a scene of Edinburgh Castle and the Old Town as seen from Salisbury Crags, the New Town and shipping on the Firth of Forth in the background.

Andrew Pattison, head of banknotes department at auction house Noonans said: “It was a great privilege to handle this exceptional group of specimens and trials on behalf of the British Heart Foundation. The biggest thanks must go to all our bidders, all of whom are passionate banknote collectors. Material of this quality is extremely rare and collectors all over the world have responded extremely well, with many of the notes selling for that little bit more than normal on account of the charitable nature of the sale.”