The now retired journalist Trevor Sykes, who appeared in The Australian Financial Review as Pierpont for more than 30 years, was one of the first to write a story on the joys of collecting antique share certificates or scrip.

This was back in the heady days of Bond and Skase when Sykes, the late Robert Holmes a Court and fellow Perth businessman Laith Reynolds were the three most prominent scrip collectors in Australia, competing head-to-head at the relatively few auctions in which financial documents were included.

In his 1987 story for the Collectors Annual, Sykes noted that an 1818 Bank of New South Wales certificate had fetched $8200 at a Spink auction in November 1986, setting an Australian record price at auction.

“The piece deserved the price,” he wrote. “It is one of the earliest known share certificates to be issued in Australia and there is a story behind every name which appears on it.”

Sykes pointed out that there were no companies in Australia before 1817. This then is a significant piece of history.

“By world standards the market prices for early Australian scrip are not extravagantly high,” Sykes noted. “There is, however, a great dearth of material. Australian scrip rarely appears in auction catalogues and when it does it meets a ready demand.”

At another Spink auction in early 1987, a large quantity of scrip was sold in parcels of about 20 certificates each. Most of these fetched from $300 to $940 each, on average three times the estimate.

Two decades later not much has changed. Spink no longer trades in Australia but Noble Numismatics includes a selection of scrip in its auctions of coins, medals and banknotes. It's one of the few auction houses in Australia to sell this material on a regular basis.

At Noble's latest sale, on July 21 in Melbourne, most lots of individual or small parcels of certificates were given estimates of $100 to $250 with some notable exceptions.

Lot 4521 was for one 10 pound share, dated 1859, in the Melbourne & Suburban Railway Company, a significant part of Victoria's early rail development following the mining boom. This item was given an estimate of $300 but sold for a healthy $550.

The other big performer on the day was a selection of three railway-related certificates from Tasmania, including one dated 1899 from Colonel North Mines & Railway Company in Zeehan. The three were given a modest total estimate of $120 but sold for $1100 after some spirited bidding.

The appeal of an obscure mining and railway company in Tasmania is not known, but the highest price paid recently in Australia is $15,000 for a Bank of New South Wales certificate dated 1832 (others may have traded for more privately).

This fits in with Sykes's observation that any pre-1850 material is considered extremely rare, especially if related to the early banking and finance sectors. Collectors of scrip tend to concentrate on three main categories – finance, industrial and oil and mining.

The discovery of gold in the second half of the 19th century inspired the floating of thousands of companies – some, like Broken Hill Proprietary, still with us in some form. Collectors of mining scrip could devote a lifetime to collecting from the Coolgardie and Kalgoorlie regions alone. It is estimated that 690 mining companies associated with the Eastern Goldfields of WA floated on the London Stock Exchange in 1896 alone.

One of the figures involved in this rush was future US president Herbert Hoover, who arrived in Kalgoorlie as a mining engineer, then, among other ventures, helped start the Sons of Gwalia mine, became a partner in Bewick, Moreing and Co and co-founded the Zinc Corporation (now Rio Tinto) in 1905.

Hoover's signature appears on several certificates from this period and is considered a valuable bonus by scrip collectors around the world. The historical significance of the signatory is one factor in the value of scrip; another is the design. Some certificates are beautiful works of graphic art, with handwriting in copperplate done by professional penmen.

Also prized are certificates with stories to tell. A favourite from the Holmes a Court collection was for a company formed in 1930 to hunt for buried treasure in the Cocos and Keeling Islands. One of the directors named is F.A. Worsley, a member of Ernest Shackleton's expedition to the South Pole.

The shareholder could also be important. Collector Jack Barrett (see My Collection) especially treasures the 1912 certificate he has for 1000 shares in West Rand Unified Limited of the Transvaal, which was originally owned by Dame Nellie Melba.

It's Share No. 5, an indication that she was probably closely connected to the founders of the company.

This certificate now takes pride of place on the family piano.

Noble Numismatics' next sale, including a selection of antique scrip, will take place on November 24–26 at the Hotel InterContinental, Macquarie Street, Sydney.

MY COLLECTION

Perth mining consultant Jack Barrett has been collecting share certificates for more than 30 years and now has one of Australia's biggest collections, at about 2500 pieces.

“The history of Australia is fascinating,” he says. “And the scrip drew interest in trying to understand Australia's background better.

"These are fascinating items in that each one is unique and reflects many aspects due to its origin. The aspects can be national, historical, economics or an indication of the people involved.”

Although mining is an obvious area of interest for Barrett, he says he started collecting broadly and has continued that way. Like most serious collectors of scrip, he tends to concentrate on pre-1915 items.

His most valuable item is possibly the oldest, a share certificate for the Australian Agricultural Company, dated 1829. Established in 1824, this was one of the first companies to be formed here.

Another important document is for the London & West Australian Mining Co., signed in 1902 by Herbert Hoover before he became US president. Hoover was based in Kalgoorlie at the time. Most of Barrett's collection is stored in a security system, except for his sentimental favourite, a certificate formerly owned and signed by Dame Nellie Melba. This one is framed and sits on top of the piano.

$120

This 1891 certificate for 100 shares of £5 each in the Federal Bank of Australasia Limited is a typical piece of banking history.

$250

Dated 1859, this £10 share in the Melbourne & Suburban Railway Company is a valuable piece of Australian corporate history. It sold at Noble Numismatics' latest auction.

$550

Gold mining is a popular subject. This scrip, for the Alpine Gold Mining Company of Stringers Creek, Victoria, is dated 1866.