Heritage Offers PMG-certified $5,000 and $10,000 Notes Expected to Realize Six Figures

Five high-denomination 1934 Federal Reserve Notes that are expected to realize six figures are among the notes certified by Paper Money Guaranty® (PMG®) in an upcoming Heritage Auctions sale. More than 1,700 PMG-certified notes are offered in the CSNS Currency Signature Auction, which concludes May 7-10, 2024.

Amid the economic challenges of the Great Depression, the United States experimented with issuing high-denomination Federal Reserve Notes, which were typically used to facilitate large transactions, particularly within the banking sector. Among them are the 1934 Series $5,000 and $10,000 Federal Reserve Notes, which today are among the most coveted rarities in American numismatics.

The top lot in this Heritage sale is a 1934 $5,000 Federal Reserve Note (Kansas City) graded PMG 65 Gem Uncirculated EPQ (lot 22091), which has an estimate of at least $500,000. This is the finest of the four examples of this particular catalog number in the PMG Population Report and it is tied for finest-graded of all 126 $5,000 Small Size Federal Reserve Notes there, which also includes the 1928 Series. Two other PMG-certified 1934 $5,000 Federal Reserve Notes are also offered, each with an estimate of at least $150,000: a Richmond example graded PMG 55 About Uncirculated (lot 22089) and a New York example graded PMG 63 Choice Uncirculated EPQ (lot 22088).

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While fourth US President James Madison is featured on the $5,000 notes, the 1934 $10,000 Federal Reserve Notes show Salmon P. Chase, who was Treasury Secretary under President Abraham Lincoln. Two high-grade Boston examples of these notes are featured in the auction: one graded PMG 65 Gem Uncirculated EPQ (lot 22092) with an estimate of at least $400,000 and the other graded PMG 64 Choice Uncirculated EPQ (lot 22093), with an estimate of at least $300,000.

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Along with these high-denomination Federal Reserve Notes, bidders will find many more exciting banknotes in the auction to enhance their collections. You can read more about the other items in this auction by clicking here.