© Bank of Canada - used with permission

1972 $5 Note - Triple Folding Error

During the printing process, problems can occur. One such example is when a sheet of banknotes gets either folded or creased before or during the printing process. The result is a note that when unfolded reveals a streak down the note where it is void of some ink.

Most often, the sheet goes through the first stage (lithographed printing) without a problem. Then the sheet somehow gets a fold or a crease before it completes the rest of the process. This produces the kind of error shown above. You can see that the background (lithographed) printing is intact, but the engraved printing and the serial number is split, indicating that it was applied while the note was folded.

Error notes can often command high prices, especially as they get more and more dramatic. Errors of this type however, are somewhat common. The above note is perhaps valued at approximately $90 to $100. A similar note with only a single fold would tend to be valued at about $35.

Contributor: nova7415

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