WHITEHOUSE STATION, N.J. – The Chimpanzee Bank, an early 1880s cast iron mechanical bank by Kyser & Rex, sold for $26,400 at RSL Auction Company’s June 26 sale offering the single-owner bank collection of late collector Paul Cole.

The chimpanzee, seen in formal attire with a blue coat over a collared shirt, sits with a book before him. He leans over his ledger to record the deposit when a coin is dropped in.

“This type of thematic inspiration (primates as humans) clearly springs from the controversial scientific debate about Darwinian evolutionary theory in his seminal treatise On the Origin of the Species,” the auction house wrote.

RSL said the condition of the bank was superior, noting that many of these have damage to the perforated dome atop. This example was intact.

Watch for a full review of this sale in a future issue.