Notaphily
Encyclopedia
Notaphily is the study of paper money
or banknote
s. A notaphilist is a collector of banknotes, paper money, paper currency or plastic notes.
for as long as it has been in use. While people began collecting paper currency more systematically in the 1940s, the turning point occurred in the 1970s when notaphily was established as a separate area by collectors. The term was devised in this decade by a group of employees working for the collectors and investements firm Stanley Gibbons, in a successful attempt to formalise and encourage interest in the area.
At the same time, some developed countries such as the USA
, Germany
and France
began publishing their respective national catalogues of paper money, which represented major points of reference literature.
In 1961, The International Bank Note Society (IBNS) was formed as an international association of banknote collectors. Nowadays it has thousands of members from around the world . The IBNS publishes the quarterly IBNS Journal, holds regular mail bid auctions, and promotes lectures at congresses.
The major contributor to this study has been Albert Pick
who published some of the earliest catalogues of paper money and through them explained the objective of collecting paper money and the definition of it. Albert Pick is also the author of the capital part of the Standard Catalog of World Paper Money, now a three-volume set which consists of thousands of pages of almost the entire collection of the world paper money that has ever existed and is updated annually. Almost every note of every country and many special and regional issues are cataloged following a unique format for each entry: [Country Name]P[unique number for the banknote edition]
So, we have something like: Yugoslavia P-105.
An important aspect of collecting banknotes is the condition of items. Banknotes that haven't been issued and circulated are rated as uncirculated (UNC) and that is the highest classification for a value that a banknote can have. In addition to that, the value for a specific note in the world paper money catalog is listed for UNC condition.
In addition to these grades, it is common to indicate an in-between grade, such as AU-UNC, which is a note that falls between AU and UNC, (e.g., a note with a noticeable counting fold).
Certain vendors and auctioneers break the UNC grade down further, into three grades.
Most collectors will always prefer an Uncirculated note, and these notes command substantial premiums over lower grades. A note in UNC condition is generally worth up to ten times more in this condition compared with merely VG (Very Good). An UNC note can be worth three times as much as a VF one. For notes seldom found in uncirculated condition, the premium may be even higher. The difference between Gem Uncirculated and Uncirculated can also be substantial. As a result, buyers are at risk of grade inflation, in that a dealer failing to notice a fold in an AU note and passing it off as UNC will undoubtedly feel justified in charging a higher price.
Bank notes below VF are usually considered undesirable in a collection, and are generally purchased where better-quality examples are either unavailable due to their scarcity or simply beyond the collector's budget. Common notes in such poor condition, however, are effectively unsaleable for anything above their face value (assuming they are still legal tender).
Various third party grading companies (TPG) offer the service of authentication, grading and cataloging of common varieties of paper currency. These TPGs typically use a seventy-point grading scale to describe the note. Additional notations may be made for exceptional paper quality or other varieties.
Following examination, TPG companies typically encapsulate the currency in what is commonly referred to as a "slab." Similar to the issues surrounding the transition that occurred within the coin collecting field many years ago, controversy exists about the need or value of TPG notes. Without having the ability to closely examine and feel the note due to it being sealed inside the slab, many collectors are not comfortable accepting the opinion of others as to the grade and may either elect not to purchase the note or to cut it out of the slab for examination. Additionally, many noted mistakes in grading by third party grading services have been discovered. However, for collectors less adept at grading, purchasing a note in a slab can provide some additional comfort for the owner in justifying the purchase and cost. It also serves to help protect the collector against unethical activities designed to increase the worth of the note by pressing out folds, washing, repairing tears, or other alterations typically viewed as unacceptable thereby lowering the value of the item.
The vast majority of bank notes are sold using the Uncirculated-Poor grading system, and are never graded with any third party.
collecting has become a branch of notaphily, especially in England
since the 1980s. Some countries, such as Basutoland
, the British Somaliland Protectorate, and Northern Rhodesia
never issued their own banknotes, but they did issue their own postal orders, however. Great Britain
, the Isle of Man
, and Northern Ireland
also issued Old Age Pension Order
s as well as postal orders. These have become collectible in recent years.
Organizations:
Money
Money is any object or record that is generally accepted as payment for goods and services and repayment of debts in a given country or socio-economic context. The main functions of money are distinguished as: a medium of exchange; a unit of account; a store of value; and, occasionally in the past,...
or banknote
Banknote
A banknote is a kind of negotiable instrument, a promissory note made by a bank payable to the bearer on demand, used as money, and in many jurisdictions is legal tender. In addition to coins, banknotes make up the cash or bearer forms of all modern fiat money...
s. A notaphilist is a collector of banknotes, paper money, paper currency or plastic notes.
History
It is believed that people have been collecting paper moneyPaper Money
Paper Money is the second album by the band Montrose. It was released in 1974 and was the band's last album to feature Sammy Hagar as lead vocalist.-History:...
for as long as it has been in use. While people began collecting paper currency more systematically in the 1940s, the turning point occurred in the 1970s when notaphily was established as a separate area by collectors. The term was devised in this decade by a group of employees working for the collectors and investements firm Stanley Gibbons, in a successful attempt to formalise and encourage interest in the area.
At the same time, some developed countries such as the USA
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
and France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
began publishing their respective national catalogues of paper money, which represented major points of reference literature.
In 1961, The International Bank Note Society (IBNS) was formed as an international association of banknote collectors. Nowadays it has thousands of members from around the world . The IBNS publishes the quarterly IBNS Journal, holds regular mail bid auctions, and promotes lectures at congresses.
The major contributor to this study has been Albert Pick
Albert Pick
Albert Pick is a retired German numismatist. An internationally acknowledged specialist author on the subject of paper money, Pick wrote the first modern catalog of banknotes in 1974, and is widely credited with establishing the modern face of banknote collecting.His Standard Catalog of World...
who published some of the earliest catalogues of paper money and through them explained the objective of collecting paper money and the definition of it. Albert Pick is also the author of the capital part of the Standard Catalog of World Paper Money, now a three-volume set which consists of thousands of pages of almost the entire collection of the world paper money that has ever existed and is updated annually. Almost every note of every country and many special and regional issues are cataloged following a unique format for each entry: [Country Name]P[unique number for the banknote edition]
So, we have something like: Yugoslavia P-105.
Authentication, grading and cataloging
Banknotes are usually graded on a descriptive scale of grades. These grades vary somewhat internationally, and as time goes on more grades have been added. The grades specified by the International Bank Note Society are as follows:- Uncirculated (UNC) - refers to a banknote that is bright and has no handling damage, such as folds or creases, nor any cuts, stains, or rounded corners
- About uncirculated (AU) - a banknote that is still bright but has trivial handling damage, i.e. a light center fold (not a crease, which is a break of the fibres of the paper), without rounded corners.
- Extremely fine (XF or EF) - a banknote with one crease or up to three light folds. Paper still bright and attractive, very slight wear to corners allowed.
- Very Fine (VF) - Note still attractive, but possible slight dirt or smudging, may have several horizontal and/or vertical folds. Paper remains relatively crisp. No tears, but slight wear to edges and corners is allowable.
- Fine (F) - Paper is now slightly soft, considerable wear due to folds from use in circulation. Minor tears to note, not extending into the design. Clear but not bright in appearance. Staple holes but not holes due to folding.
- Very Good (VG) - Much wear. Paper is limp. Tears can extend into the design. Staining possible. Discoloration possible. Hole at center caused by folding allowable. Note still looks presentable.
- Good (G) - Very much wear, as VG, but more so. Graffiti on note. Small pieces of the note may be missing
- Fair - Larger pieces of note torn off/missing, compared with G. Less of the note intact.
- Poor - Severe damage due to wear, staining, missing pieces, graffiti and/or holes. May be taped together, have pieces missing. The worst possible condition.
In addition to these grades, it is common to indicate an in-between grade, such as AU-UNC, which is a note that falls between AU and UNC, (e.g., a note with a noticeable counting fold).
Certain vendors and auctioneers break the UNC grade down further, into three grades.
- Gem Uncirculated or Gem Crisp Uncirculated - A perfect note, not just in original condition, but with large equally balanced margins, outstanding colour. Thus such a note is not just as originally printed, but was also printed well in the first place.
- Choice Uncirculated/Crisp Choice Uncirculated - Just less than perfect, tiny foxingFoxingFoxing is a term describing the age-related spots and browning seen on vintage paper documents such as books, postage stamps, certificates, and so forth. The name may derive from the fox-like reddish-brown color of the stains, or the rust chemical ferric oxide which may be involved...
, faint counting smudges, or slightly off-center margins - Uncirculated/Crisp Uncirculated - Still not folded or creased, but suffering from any of: slight fading, yellowing, foxing, very off-center margins, corner folds only in the blank area (not the design)
Most collectors will always prefer an Uncirculated note, and these notes command substantial premiums over lower grades. A note in UNC condition is generally worth up to ten times more in this condition compared with merely VG (Very Good). An UNC note can be worth three times as much as a VF one. For notes seldom found in uncirculated condition, the premium may be even higher. The difference between Gem Uncirculated and Uncirculated can also be substantial. As a result, buyers are at risk of grade inflation, in that a dealer failing to notice a fold in an AU note and passing it off as UNC will undoubtedly feel justified in charging a higher price.
Bank notes below VF are usually considered undesirable in a collection, and are generally purchased where better-quality examples are either unavailable due to their scarcity or simply beyond the collector's budget. Common notes in such poor condition, however, are effectively unsaleable for anything above their face value (assuming they are still legal tender).
Various third party grading companies (TPG) offer the service of authentication, grading and cataloging of common varieties of paper currency. These TPGs typically use a seventy-point grading scale to describe the note. Additional notations may be made for exceptional paper quality or other varieties.
Following examination, TPG companies typically encapsulate the currency in what is commonly referred to as a "slab." Similar to the issues surrounding the transition that occurred within the coin collecting field many years ago, controversy exists about the need or value of TPG notes. Without having the ability to closely examine and feel the note due to it being sealed inside the slab, many collectors are not comfortable accepting the opinion of others as to the grade and may either elect not to purchase the note or to cut it out of the slab for examination. Additionally, many noted mistakes in grading by third party grading services have been discovered. However, for collectors less adept at grading, purchasing a note in a slab can provide some additional comfort for the owner in justifying the purchase and cost. It also serves to help protect the collector against unethical activities designed to increase the worth of the note by pressing out folds, washing, repairing tears, or other alterations typically viewed as unacceptable thereby lowering the value of the item.
The vast majority of bank notes are sold using the Uncirculated-Poor grading system, and are never graded with any third party.
Postal Order collecting
Postal orderPostal Order
In the United Kingdom , a Postal Order is used for sending money through the mail. In the United States, this is known as a Postal money order...
collecting has become a branch of notaphily, especially in England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
since the 1980s. Some countries, such as Basutoland
Basutoland
Basutoland or officially the Territory of Basutoland, was a British Crown colony established in 1884 after the Cape Colony's inability to control the territory...
, the British Somaliland Protectorate, and Northern Rhodesia
Northern Rhodesia
Northern Rhodesia was a territory in south central Africa, formed in 1911. It became independent in 1964 as Zambia.It was initially administered under charter by the British South Africa Company and formed by it in 1911 by amalgamating North-Western Rhodesia and North-Eastern Rhodesia...
never issued their own banknotes, but they did issue their own postal orders, however. Great Britain
Great Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
, the Isle of Man
Isle of Man
The Isle of Man , otherwise known simply as Mann , is a self-governing British Crown Dependency, located in the Irish Sea between the islands of Great Britain and Ireland, within the British Isles. The head of state is Queen Elizabeth II, who holds the title of Lord of Mann. The Lord of Mann is...
, and Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
also issued Old Age Pension Order
Old Age Pension Order
The Old Age Pension Order is the close cousin of the postal order that was issued between 1909 and 2005 in the United Kingdom. They were also issued in the Isle of Man and Northern Ireland, but information about these issues are extremely sketchy....
s as well as postal orders. These have become collectible in recent years.
Specialties
People collect paper money by:- Topic (wildlife, ships, famous people)
- Time periodEraAn era is a commonly used word for long period of time. When used in science, for example geology, eras denote clearly defined periods of time of arbitrary but well defined length, such as for example the Mesozoic era from 252 Ma–66 Ma, delimited by a start event and an end event. When used in...
(Series, date) - Country (native, favourite or unusual)
- Substrate (paper or polymer)
- Serial Number
- Grade
- Varieties caused by major or minor design changes
- Replacement or star notes commonly used to replace errors discovered during the printing process.
See also
- NumismaticsNumismaticsNumismatics is the study or collection of currency, including coins, tokens, paper money, and related objects. While numismatists are often characterized as students or collectors of coins, the discipline also includes the broader study of money and other payment media used to resolve debts and the...
- ScripophilyScripophilyScripophily is the study and collection of stock and bond certificates. A specialized field of numismatics, scripophily is an interesting area of collecting due to both the inherent beauty of some historical documents as well as the interesting historical context of each document. Some stock...
- Numismatic terminologyNumismatic terminologyThis article is a collection of Numismatic and coin collecting terms with concise explanation for the beginner or professional.Numismatics is the scientific study of money and its history in all its varied forms...
- Paper money catalogPaper money catalogA paper money catalog or banknote catalog is a catalog of banknotes and articles related to notable ones. The catalog is an essential tool of collecting as it provides information about the articles that many times cannot be extracted from them directly, such as the amount of banknotes printed.In...
s - Postal OrderPostal OrderIn the United Kingdom , a Postal Order is used for sending money through the mail. In the United States, this is known as a Postal money order...
- The Postal Order Society (Great Britain)The Postal Order Society (Great Britain)The Postal Order Society is a numismatic and philatelic society which was established in 1985 by Howard Lunn, who became the first Chairman of the Society.- Aims :...
External links
Information:- Polymer Bank Notes of the World
- First Ukrainian Banknotes
- World banknotes catalog
- Ron's WPM Homepage
Organizations: