UNC

Uncirculated

A perfectly preserved note, never mishandled by the issuing authority, a bank teller, the public or a collector. Paper is clean and firm, without discoloration. Corners are sharp and square without any evidence of rounding. (Rounded corners are often a tell-tale sign of a cleaned or 'doctored' note.) In this grade we add About Uncirculated (AU) grade, a virtually perfect note, with some minor handling. May show very slight evidence of bank counting folds at a corner or one light fold through the center, but not both. An AU note canot be creased, a crease being a hard fold wish has usually 'broken' the surface of the note. Paper is clean and bright with original sheen. Corners are not rouded. We add also: AU-, AU+, UNC-, UNC+

XF

Extremely Fine

A very attractive note, with light handling. May have a maximum of three light folds or one strong crease. Paper is clean and firm, without discoloration. Corners are sharp and square without any evidence of rounding. (Rounded corners are often a tell-tale sign of a cleaned or 'doctored' note). We add also: XF-, XF+

VF

Very Fine

An attractive note, but with more evidence of handling and wear. May have several folds both vertically and horizontally. Paper may have minimal dirt, or possible color smudging. Paper itself is still relatively crisp and not floppy. There are no tears into the border area, although the edges do show slight wear. Corners also show wear but not full rounding. We add also: VF-, VF+

F

Fine

A note that shows considerable circulation, with many folda, creases and wrinkling. Paper is not excessively dirty but may have some softness.Edges may show much handling, with minor tears in the border area. Tears may not extend into the design. There will be no center hole because of excessive folding. Colors are clear but not very bright. A staple hole or two would not be considered unusual wear in a fine note. Overall appearance is still on the desirable side. We add also: F-, F+

VG

Very Good

A well used note, abused but still intact. Corners may have much wear and rounding, tiny nicks, tears may extend into the design, some discoloration may be present, staining may have ocurred, and a small hole may sometimes be seen at center from excessive folding. Staple and pinholes are usually present, and the note itself is quite limp but NO pieces of the note can be missing. A note in VG condition may still have an overall not unattractive appearance. We add also: VG-, VG+

G

Good

A well worn and heavily used note. Normal damage from prolonged circulation will include strong multiple folds and creases, stains, pinholes and/or staple holes, dirth, discoloration, edge tears, center hole, rounded corners and an overall unattractive appearance. No large pieces of the note may be missing. Graffiti is commonly seen on notes in G condition. In this grade we add FAIR grade, a totally limp, dirty and very well used note. Larger pieces may be half torn off or missing besides the defects mentioned under the Good category. Tears will be larger, obscured portions of the note will be bigger. In this grade we add POOR grade too, a "rag" with severe damage because of wear, staining, pieces missing, graffiti, larger holes. May have tape holding pieces of the note together. Trimming may have taken place to remove rough edges. A Poor note is desirable only as a "filler" or when such a note is the only one known of that particular issue.We add also: POOR-, POOR+, FAIR-, FAIR+, G-, G+

UNC

Uncirculated

For Uncirculated grades there will be no visible signs of wear or handling, even under a 30-power microscope. Bag marks may be present. In this grade we add Almost Uncirculated (AU) grade, all details will be visible. There will be wear only on the highest point of the coin. There will often be half or more of the original mint luster present. We add also: AU-, AU+, UNC-, UNC+

XF

Extremely Fine

On the Extremely Fine coin, there will be about 95% of the original detail visible. Or, on a coin with a design with no inner detail to wear down, there will be a light wear over nearly all the coins. If a small design is used as the grading area, about 90% of the original detail will be visible. This latter rule stems from the logic that a smaller amount of detail needs to be present because a small area is being used to grade the whole coin. We add also: XF-, XF+

VF

Very Fine

The Very Fine coin will have about 75% of the original detail visible. Or, on a coin with no inner detail, there will be moderate wear over the entire coin. Corners of letters and numbers may be weak. A Small grading area will have about 66% of the original detail. We add also: VF-, VF+

F

Fine

For Fine, there will be about 50% of the original detail visible. Or, on a coin with no inner detail, there will be fairly heavy wear over all of the coin. Sides of letters will be weak. A typically uncleaned coin will often appears as dirty or dull. A small grading area will have just under 50% of the original detail. We add also: F-, F+

VG

Very Good

On the Very Good coin, there will be about 25% of the original detail visible. There will be heavy wear on all of the coin. We add also: VG-, VG+

G

Good

The Good coin's design will be clearly outlined but with substantial wear. Some of the larger detail may be visible. The rim may have a few weak spots of wear. In this grade we add About Good (AG) grade, there will typically be only a silhouette of a design. The rim will be worn down into the letters if any. We add also: AG-, AG+, G-, G+