Collecting coins and rare bills is a hobby that not many people can afford to do properly. Unless you are a lucky person who finds, and recognizes the value of, a rare item, purchasing some of the interesting collectables that are floating around can get fairly pricey. The value of some of these items can be quite subjective, as condition and provenance often matter as much as the item itself, but while there are many coins that have a small quirk that make them somewhat valuable, bills are a bit less common, harder to find, and oftentimes a lot pricier.
If we look at, for example, $5 bills, most of the ones that we will find in our wallets or even stashed away are just worth what it states on the paper, but some have gone up for auction and the value has been as high as that of a house.
Three $5 bills with incredible value
The first one that stands out is the 1890 Treasury $5 bill. Unlike the ones in circulation today, this bill is very big, as at the time the U.S. government had a very different template to print their money on. Plus, the technology of the time was not as well equipped to handle minute details a it is today, necessitating a bigger canvas in order for the details to come out crisp. Just the fact that you found a 1890 Treasury $5 bill would be enough to give it an enormous value die to its historical weight. But what really drives collectors o pay premium prices is its rarity.
Only 14 of these 1890 Treasury $5 bills are known to still exist, and that level of scarcity pushed them over the top when it comes to value, especially at auction, where collectors can verify for themselves the quality of the merchandise. back in 2013, one of these notes sold at auction for $280,000, which is, in fact, enough to purchase a home in many part of the country. Finding one of these bills on the wild would be a feat and a surefire way to get a big payday.
The next $5 bill to make our little list was printed in St. Louis in 1861, and while again, just the fact that it exists gives it enormous value, this one is different. This was one of the first times the U.S. began printing paper money on a national scale and for those who know history, it was the start of the Civil War. This means that these notes helped fund the war effort, which adds another layer of historical importance.
Perhaps because of the controversy surrounding them or because most of them are not in good condition, or because more of them exist, these $5 bills do not fetch as high of a price in auction, but they are nothing to sneeze at. When one was auctioned in 2018 it fetched a still impressive $81,000.
The last $5 bill that we are talking about is also from 1861, but this one has a little quirk that collectors absolutely love and which makes it even more valuable. During its early print run, someone left in two little words “for the” making it different to the intended design. Unlike what regular consumers would thing, collectors know that any mistake can make the value of a note soar and this is no different. Since the printing error was only in one run, it made the bill incredibly rare and thus, valuable.
For anyone that wishes to own one of these, prepare to pay, as they are really rare die to the age and the time it was printed, and one of the bills that was in top-notch condition sold in 2007 for $138,000.