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Notes $5.00 and under

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World Banknotes

Afghanistan

Albania

Aldabra Island (fun notes)

Algeria

Amotekunia (fun notes)

Angola

Anguilla (fun notes)

Antarctica (fun notes)

Antigua

Antigua (fun notes)

Arctic Territories (fun notes)

Argentina

Armenia

Aruba

Aruba (fun notes)

Atlantic Forest (fun notes)

Atlantic Ocean (fun notes)

Australia

Australia (fun notes)

Austria

Azerbaijan

Azores Islands

Azores Islands (fun notes)

Bahamas

Bahrain

Banco Nacional (fun notes)

Bangladesh

Banknote Commodity Tokens (fun notes)

Banzibra (fun notes)

Barbados

Barbados (fun notes)

Barbuda (fun notes)

Belarus

Belgium

Belize

Benin

Beringia (fun notes)

Bermuda

Bhutan

Biafra

Bohemia & Moravia

Bohemia & Moravia (fun notes)

Bolivia

Bosnia-Herzegovina

Botswana

Brazil

Brazil (fun notes)

Brazilch (fun notes)

British Caribbean Territories

British Guiana

British Guiana (fun notes)

British Honduras

British Indian Ocean Territory (fun notes)

British West Africa

Brunei

Bueno Chini (fun notes)

Bulgaria

Bulgaria (fun notes)

Burkina Faso

Burma

Burundi

Cambodia

Cameroun

Canada

Canada (fun notes)

Cape Verde

Caribbean Fantasy Money Authority (fun notes)

Cayman Islands

Central African Republic

Central African States

Ceylon

Ceylon (fun notes)

Chad

Chatham Islands (fun notes)

Chile

China

Colombia

Colombia (fun notes)

Comoros Islands

Confederate States of America

Confederate States of America (fun notes)

Congo Democratic Republic

Congo Peoples Republic

Congo Republic

Cook Islands

Costa Rica

Croatia

Cuba

Curacao

Cyprus

Czech Republic

Czechoslovakia

Denmark

Disney Dollars (fun notes)

Djibouti

Dominica

Dominica (fun notes)

Dominican Republic

Drift Island (fun notes)

East Africa

East Caribbean States

Easter Island (fun notes)

Ecuador

Egypt

Eklisivia (fun notes)

El Banco del Polo Norte (Christmas Bill) (fun notes)

El Salvador

England

Equatorial African States

Equatorial Guinea

Equatorial Territories (fun notes)

Eritrea

Estonia

Ethiopia

European Union

European Union (fun notes)

Evshlohogi Islands (fun notes)

Faeroe Islands

Falkland Islands

FANTASY ART NOTE COLLECTIONS (fun notes)

FANTASY COINS (fun notes)

Federation of North America (fun notes)

Fiji

Finland

Finland (fun notes)

France

France (fun notes)

French Guiana

French Guiana (fun notes)

French Indochina

French Oceania

French Oceania (fun notes)

French Pacific Territories

French West Africa

FUN NOTES ASSORTED (fun notes)

Gabon

Galapagos Islands (fun notes)

Gambia

Georgia

German Democratic Republic

German East Africa (fun notes)

German East Africa

Germany

Germany (fun notes)

Germany - Local Inflation

Germany - Notgeld

Germany, West (FDR)

Ghana

Gibraltar

Gilbert and Ellice Islands (fun notes)

Great Brighton & Northern Direland (fun notes)

Great Britain

Great Britain (fun notes)

Greater Republic of Central America (fun notes)

Greece

Greece (fun notes)

Greenland

Greenland (fun notes)

Grenada (fun notes)

Guadeloupe

Guadeloupe and Martinique (fun notes)

Guatemala

Guernsey

Guinea

Guinea-Bissau

Guyana

Haiti

Hawaiian Islands

Hawaiian Islands (fun notes)

Honduras

Hong Kong

Hungary

Hungary (fun notes)

Ice Age (fun notes)

Iceland

India

Indir Catan (fun notes)

Indonesia

Indonesia (fun notes)

Iran

Iraq

Iraq (fun notes)

Ireland

Isle of Komplece (fun notes)

Isle of Man

Israel

Italy

Italy (fun notes)

Ivory Coast (WAS)

Jamaica

Jamaica (fun notes)

Japan

Jason Islands (fun notes)

Jersey

Jordan

Jurassic Bank (fun notes)

Kamberra (fun notes)

Kazakhstan

Keeling Cocos Islands

Kenya

Kerguelen Archipelagos (fun notes)

Kingdom of the Francs (fun notes)

Kuninganna Territory (fun notes)

Kuwait

Kyrgyzstan

La Savanna (fun notes)

Laos

Latvia

Lebanon

Leeward Islands

Leeward Islands (fun notes)

Lesotho

Lia Antootica (fun notes)

Liberia

Libya

Liechtenstein

Liechtenstein (fun notes)

Lithuania

Lumentina (fun notes)

Luxembourg

Macao

Macedonia

Macedonia, North

Madagascar

Malawi

Malaya

Malaya and British Borneo

Malaysia

Malaysia (fun notes)

Maldives

Mali

Malta

Manana (fun notes)

Mardi Gras (fun notes)

Marie Byrd Land (fun notes)

Martinique

Martinique (fun notes)

Mauritania

Mauritius

Mayan Empire (fun notes)

MEDALLIC ART

Mexico

Mexico (fun notes)

MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS

Moldova

Monaco (fun notes)

Mongolia

Montenegro

Montserrat

Montserrat (fun notes)

Montserrat Island (fun notes)

Morocco

MOVIE PROP MONEY (fun notes)

Mozambique

Mrokland (fun notes)

Mujand Republic (fun notes)

Muscat & Oman

Myanmar

Nagorno-Karabakh

Nakedonie (fun notes)

Namibia

Nation of Andaqesh (fun notes)

Neilland (fun notes)

Nepal

Netherlands

Netherlands (fun notes)

Netherlands Antilles

Netherlands Ceylon (fun notes)

Netherlands Guinea {Ghana} (fun notes)

Netherlands Indies

Netherlands Indies (fun notes)

Netherlands Mauritius (fun notes)

New Caledonia

New Caledonia & Wallis & Futuna (fun notes)

New Hebrides

New Jason Islands (fun notes)

New Zealand

Newdgaledonia (fun notes)

Newfoundland

Newfoundland (fun notes)

Nicaragua

Niger

Nigeria

Nordur Icees (fun notes)

North Korea

North Sea Empire (fun notes)

Northern Ireland

Norway

Nudedenland (fun notes)

Oceania

Oman

Outer Space-Related (fun notes)

Pacific States of Melanesia Micronesia & Polynesia (fun notes)

Pakistan

Palestine

Palmyra Island (fun notes)

Panama

Panama (fun notes)

Panama Canal Zone (US) (fun notes)

Papua New Guinea

Paraguay

Peru

Petra Rose Precious Metals (fun notes)

Philippines

Philippines (fun notes)

Pitcairn Islands (fun notes)

Piwi Island (fun notes)

Poland

Political (fun notes)

Poneet Islands (fun notes)

Portugal

Portugal (fun notes)

Portuguese Guinea

Private Reserve Note (fun notes)

Puerto Rico

Puerto Rico (fun notes)

Qatar

Redonda Islands (fun notes)

Reed Banknote Company (fun notes)

REPLICA BANKNOTES (fun notes)

REPLICA COINS (fun notes)

Republic of Pratny (fun notes)

Republic of Texas (fun notes)

Republica Aborigen (fun notes)

Reunion

Reunion (fun notes)

Reunion and Mayotte (fun notes)

Rhodesia

Rhodesia & Nyasaland

Rixbuxistan (fun notes)

Romania

Romedia (fun notes)

Russia

Russia (fun notes)

Russian States of Amerika (fun notes)

Rwanda

Saint Helena

Saint Kitts & Nevis

Saint Kitts & Nevis (fun notes)

Saint Lucia

Saint Lucia (fun notes)

Saint Pierre and Miquelon

Saint Pierre and Miquelon (fun notes)

Saint Vincent

Saint Vincent (fun notes)

Samoa

Sandwich Islands (fun notes)

Sao Tome (Saint Thomas & Prince)

Sarawak (fun notes)

Saudi Arabia

Scotland

Scotland (fun notes)

Senegal

Serbia

Seychelles

Sierra Leone

Sima Senco (fun notes)

Singapore

Slovakia

Slovakia (fun notes)

Slovenia

Solomon Islands

Somali Democratic Republic

Somaliland

Soneat Islands (fun notes)

South Africa

South Korea

South Pacific States (fun notes)

South Sudan

South Vietnam

Spain

Spain (fun notes)

SPECIAL NUMBERS

Sri Lanka

STOCKS & BONDS - FOREIGN

STOCKS & BONDS - UNITED STATES.

Sub-Saharan African Union (fun notes)

Sudan

Suriname

Swaziland

Sweden

Switzerland

Syria

Tahiti

Tahiti (fun notes)

Taiwan

Tajikistan

Tanzania

Tatarstan

Territory of West Junee (fun notes)

Test Banknotes (fun notes)

Thailand

Timor

Titanic (fun notes)

Togo

TOM STEBBINS PRINTS (fun notes)

Tonga

Toroguay (fun notes)

Tortola Islands (fun notes)

Tortuga (fun notes)

Transnistria

Trinidad and Tobago

Trinidad and Tobago (fun notes)

Tunisia

Turkey

Turkmenistan

Uganda

Ukraine

Ukraine (fun notes)

Union of Soviet Socialist Antarctic Republics (fun notes)

United - Current Issues

United Arab Emirates

United Federation of Planets (fun notes)

United States

United States (fun notes)

United States (ACC State) (fun notes)

United States (fantasy MPC) (fun notes)

United States - Company Scrip

United States - Current Issues

United States - Old Checks, etc.

United States - Savings Bonds

United States - Souvenir Cards

United States - Tax Stamps

United States - Travelers Cheques

Untied States (fun notes)

Untied Video Artists (fun notes)

Upper Mermaidea (fun notes)

Uruguay

Uzbekistan

Vanuatu

Vatican City

Vatican City (fun notes)

Venezuela

Vietnam

West African States

West Indies Federation (fun notes)

West Junee (fun notes)

World Super Currency (fun notes)

Yemen Arab Republic

Yemen Democratic Republic

Yugoslavia

Zaire

Zambia

Zambibwe (fun notes)

Zanzibar (fun notes)

Zealandia (fun notes)

Zimbabwe

Zimbabwe (fun notes)

ZZ - SOLD AT AUCTION

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Since 1981, a trusted dealer in accurately-graded, high quality collectible world currency, fantasy art bills, stocks, bonds, checks, movie money, and more!


Grading the Notes you Acquire

Depending on how you've acquired any notes you may now have in your collection or accumulation of worldwide currency, probably you have already entered into the exciting and sometimes controversial realm of grading. Grading means assigning a condition of preservation to a note. Happily, banknote grading is, in my opinion, generally easier to master than coin grading and therefore not quite so subject to broad interpretation and controversy as is the grading of a coin. For one thing, a note is basically a two-dimensional object, while a coin is three-dimensional. The grades that banknote collectors use are essentially analogous to that of the coin collector, although the 70-point grading scale, where the state of UNCIRCULATED is broken up into eleven different substates (MS-60 to 70), is starting to rear its ugly head in the world of banknotes, though seemingly restricted for the moment to the more rare U. S. and world notes.

In any case, if you're actively acquiring notes by buying or trading for them, you need to have a good working knowledge of grading so that you can make astute decisions when purchasing or swapping these items. Also, you'll probably want to get an idea of what the items you already have may be worth. To some collectors, this monetary value is of little concern and they collect what they like (and what they are able to afford) without regard to the value the item might bring in the collector market. In fact these collectors may well derive the most pure pleasure from their holdings. Most paper money collectors, however, like to think that what they're buying may at some future date appreciate in value. Whether this will be the case or not, as some issues do indeed go up in value while others do not or remain static, in order to determine a reasonable range of value for most notes, it is necessary to be able to identify what you have correctly and be able to determine its state of preservation accurately using standards widely accepted by the collecting community.

Let's then look at the subject of grading, keeping in mind that the collector must develop his own standards based on his interpretation of the commonly-accepted system devised by the International Banknote Society, of which we will speak later. We'll start with the lowest grades and work our way up the scale. Be aware that you should examine a note out of its holder under a strong light in order to be able to see the true condition of the bill. This is especially important for high-grade notes, as some light creases and flaws are very difficult to detect except under the best lighting conditions.

Note - a some point in the future we will try to get some high resolution scans of examples of notes in various grades.

POOR - a virtual 'dog,' generally a raggy, dirty, torn and sometimes taped-up poor-excuse of a banknote that has seen better days and is generally collectible only as a filler unless it is extremely rare.

FAIR - this is barely one step up, maybe not quite so raggy or dirty but perhaps missing a piece or more of the note along with other defects. This grade still exhibits extreme limpness generally.

GOOD - like the grade 'GOOD' for a coin, GOOD really isn't so good although it is possible to have a semi-attractive note that still grades only GOOD due to the fact that it may have tears and small missing pieces as well as heavy creasing. Most GOOD notes have seen a lot of circulation and will show evidence of this such as many heavy folds, stains, edge tears perhaps extending into the design, pinholes, a center hole from excessive folding, etc.

VERY GOOD - this grade will have fewer or less severe defects than the grade of GOOD and a number of VG notes are in fact quite attractive, especially instances where a note has been folded and refolded numerous times on the same creases, wearing a small hole through center and maybe causing a tear to appear in the design. At this point I want to introduce the notion of split grades, that is, an instance where the note is clearly better than GOOD but not quite VG. In this case, we might call the grade G-VG or G+ or even aVG (about very good). Experience is the best teacher for this; after you've handled dozens of well-used notes, you may feel more comfortable about split grading. Maybe you'll never feel comfortable because you might not even like the idea. We use split grades on occasion and believe most dealers and collectors do. I am less enthusiastic about the use of a 70-point grading scale such as is used for grading coins; more on this when we get there.

FINE - this grade exhibits still considerable circulation with a number of creases, folds, wrinkles, minor border tears (which cannot enter the design portion of the note), and maybe a few pin or staple holes. At this point, a note is appearing somewhat attractive at least. After handling enough different notes, you'll come across some that appear to meet or exceed a certain grade except for some defect. Usually, this is handled by assigning that grade to the note but following it with a description of the defect. For example, you might have a note that is at least a FINE except for that somewhat obvious stain in which case you would describe it as FINE but stained or FINE but moderately stained or FINE but heavy corner stain, etc., whatever the case might be. Naturally the value of a note like this would normally be lower than a defect-free note of the same grade. Generally the higher grade a note is, the more 'picky' you should be about describing a defect that is not a normal characteristic of that grade. For example a VERY FINE note with a tiny tear or two might be listed as VF but border tear or could just be downgraded to F-VF or "net F-VF," though the tear should still be described.

VERY FINE - Moving along, we start getting into the truly bright and more attractive notes in the VF grade and up. General characteristics of a VF note include: not more than a few vertical/and horizontal folds, a crisp paper, edges and corners can show slight wear but no tears are found in the border areas or anywhere else for that matter on the typical VF note. A slight amount of soil or smudging can be present but this should really be minimal in my opinion.

EXTREMELY FINE - This is an extremely attractive note, showing only minor evidence of handling. According to the grading standards of the International Bank Note Society, or IBNS, an EF note may exhibit 'a maximum of three light folds or one strong crease.' An EF note is bright and without signs of soil. To the casual observer, it should appear just about new. There will be only very minute wear on the corners or edges.

ABOUT UNCIRCULATED - The next step up from extremely fine, this is a note which would grade uncirculated except for some very minor handling or use such as a so-called wallet fold where the note has a very light fold (not a creased fold). An AU note might have a slight bend or wrinkle from being counted. In any case, this remains a very bright, new-looking note. An AU-UNC designation is often applied to notes with an extremely inconspicuous counting wrinkle, or a note which might have a tiny corner nick, rippled surface of the paper (due to humidity or some other environmental condition), or a note having a so-called dimple at the top of the security strip. Another term used for such an AU-UNC note may be "borderline uncirculated."

UNCIRCULATED - New, as issued, with no defects with one possible exception. It is possible to have an UNC note that has staple holes, this due to the fact that some countries, including India and Pakistan, normally staple quantities of notes together prior to issue. In this case, a description of 'UNC - usual staple holes' is the rule. Otherwise, an uncirculated note is just that. More so in regards to U. S. paper currency but also occasionally used in describing UNC world notes are the adjectives 'choice' and 'gem.' I could see a particularly well-centered, attractive note perhaps earning one of these designations, however, I'm not convinced we need both terms. This mainly due to the concern that people would next move toward a silly multi-point UNC grading system like that of coins, particularly U. S. coins. In fact this has come to pass. Some very rare and not rae at all U. S. and world notes are being "slabbed" (put in special sealed holders) and commercially graded by numismatic grading companies using the 70-point scale. It has become a big business and most expensive notes today are slabbed sooner or later. Whether this is a good thing has been a matter of debate among collectors and some dealers as well. I would say third-party grading might be useful to determine authenticity of a valuable note and "perhaps useful" as a second opinion on grading.

Just my personal take on this, but it seems like a convenient way to squeeze a lot more dollars for a "superb gem UNC MS-66 note." To newcomers to the numismatic community, "MS" refers to mint state (i. e. Uncirculated) and the "66" part indicates the relative "grade of uncirculation" with 60 being the lowest and 70 the ultimate or theoretically "perfect" note. About Uncirculated would range from 50 to 59, etc. This system has been in use for a number of years now in the coin business. The worst part is the difference in a coin's value from a single key grading range (say MS-65 to MS-66) can be thousands of dollars for a "rare" item. This great difference in perceived value by some is why the whole grading system is controversial by nature because grading, is, in the final analysis, subjective (i. e. "beauty is in the eye of the beholder"). I believe a note will stand on its own; if it's hard to find, attractive, and actively sought by collectors, it's going to bring a better price. Many world notes are also common, but so attractive that they are always eagerly snapped up by enthusiastic collectors. But, I digress...

Another item to perhaps bear in mind, the grading system for U. S. notes is similar in many ways to that of world notes, but it has been my experience that the world system is generally more conservative, particularly for the upper grades. I have seen ads like "UNC - 1 fold." What does that mean? Sounds like an EF or AU note to me (EF if creased, AU if just a light fold or "wallet bend").

An additional point - notes, like coins, have sometimes been cleaned or had their appearance improved in some way. Some collectors have no problem with this, others feel, as with coins, that the items shouldn't be altered in any way. For notes, alterations can include actually washing the note (literally "laundering money!"), trimming it, erasing graffiti, pressing the note, mending tears, etc. The buyer should be aware that a note can be washed and pressed to improve its grade and a note altered in this way should not command the price of a note naturally appearing in this grade. A word of advice on mending tears, if you are inclined to mend tears, please don't use cellophane tape. Sooner or later it makes a mess of whatever its been taped to as it turns yellow and brittle. If you feel you need to tape a tear, use the permanent translucent tape that's now widely available.

The best advise I can give you is to try and look at lots of notes, offered by a multitude of dealers/sellers and see how (or if) they grade their items. Some online sellers "cop out" of grading by saying to look at the scan or scans and come up with your own grade. This might be fine and dandy except it is very difficult to determine the grade of a note unless it is a very high resolution scan and also not possible to determine if the item being offered is genuine from a scan. In the long term, having one or more experienced and trusted dealers to work with to build your collection is invaluable. Scans are great to show you the general design of a note. Some scans on this site are of the actual note being sold when it is a one-of-a-kind (particularly circulated notes). But for many bills, a generic scan is all that is used due to time constraints. Since time is money, it's just not profitable for a dealer to individually scan each of a group of notes that may be selling for less than a dollar to a few dollars each. There are so many hours in a day and a dealer needs to use them wisely in order to remain in business.

Hopefully this clarifies grading a little if you're a beginner or at least serves to demonstrate my interpretation of it and what kind of grading criteria you should expect and demand from my company. Clients have been, I am happy to report, very pleased with the quality of service as the return rate for notes has been a tiny fraction of far less than one percent. Indeed, most returns are due to a collector having accidentally ordered an item which he/she already had in his/her collection. With grading under your belt, you can then start to determine a valuation range for your notes.

Contact Info

Email: rjreed@misterbanknote.com
Mailing Address: Richard J. Reed
PO Box 52438
Sarasota, FL 34232-0320

Office Hours

Monday - Friday: 8AM - 5PM
(Eastern Standard Time)

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