An Old Silver Certificate And Some Interesting Error Notes

Just got back from my annual excursion to the one coin show I attend. I do go there primarily for coins, but there are always a few dealers selling currency as well and one guy in particular is always there and I usually end up buying a few notes from him. This year was no exception.

First up is one of the last notes on my wish list, a Series 1886 Five Dollar Silver Certificate nicknamed the "Morgan Back" Note due to the design on the back that features five silver Morgan dollars:




[I was hoping to find one in a bit better condition, but at least it's all in one piece. Besides, I've been looking for one of these for years and this is the first time I have ever seen it at the show.]

Next up are a couple of error notes. I just recently started collecting these (along with fancy serial numbers) as I've managed to obtain most of the specific notes on my wish list, and here are two more to add to my collection:



This is an example of an "Offset Printing" or "Offset Transfer" error, which occurs when an inked plate makes contact with the bed, leading to no sheet being fed to the press to accept the intended ink. As a result, when the next sheet passes through the press, the area impressed onto the impression cylinder is then pressed onto the opposite side of the note.




This is an example of an "Overprint on Back" or "Reverse Overprint" error, which is generally caused by an uncut sheet being fed into a press with the obverse of the note facing the overprinting press. The information printed by the overprinting press include Treasury and Federal Reserve District seals, district numbers and serial numbers. Such a note will be missing these elements from the front, and instead have each displayed on the back.