Robert Murray Stamp Shop, Edinburgh

Scottish Banknotes - World Banknotes

One of the areas of collectables we deal in is banknotes. The range of these attractive items is vast, and this page is intended to give a simple introduction.

If you have notes you are thinking of selling (or want to get a valuation on); Notes fall into different categories - UK and foreign, current (or recent) and obsolete.
Current UK (Scotland, England, Northern Ireland). If a note is still in circulation, or is only recently out of circulation, it is unlikely to have any collectable value above its face value. If you bring this type of thing to us, we'll be able to confirm whether it should simply be taken to the bank and cashed.
Obsolete UK. It is wrong to say that notes are more valuable because they are older, but it is true that many older notes are scarcer and therefore potentially of more value. Anything that is out of date should be worth looking at, although some may only be worth their face value, depending on their condition. For example, a moderately scarce note that might sell for a good percentage above face value in perfect condition may only be worth a small premium in average quality, and would possibly only be worth banking if in a poor state.
Current (or recent) foreign. Although most current notes can be exchanged at a bank or bureau de change, sometimes this is not worthwhile if you only have a small quantity of one country, due to the minimum fees that are often charged. Although we will often pay a lower rate, we don't have a minimum fee, so selling to us (or other dealers like ourselves) can be an advantageous way to dispose of odds and ends. Due to our contacts in the international currency business, we can also often negotiate currency notes that a bank might have told you cannot be accepted. Again, a fair percentage might come off the theoretical value, as we have to make a profit, as well as allowing a profit margin to the people we sell on to. A fair number (not all) of the notes of the countries that now use the Euro are still negotiable, but you have to know how to go about it !
Obsolete foreign. The value of these is simply down to supply and demand - numbers available, collector interest, and of course condition. There are some old notes that are in fact very common, and some modern that are scarce.

What do we do ? We act as dealers, as valuers, and as auctioneers.
Dealers. If notes are suitable for us to take into stock, we will be happy to make an offer to purchase. We can usually break down an offer into sections so that you can see which notes are getting the higher and lower prices. We are happy to buy small lots of odds, and even more happy to buy large and important collections. There is no obligation on the seller's part to accept our offer. If you have a large holding of one type of note, it is worth taking our professional advice as to how to sell such a property without flooding the market.
Auctioneers. We run a public stamps and collectables auction every few weeks, and these usually contain a small section of non-philatelic lots. Our sales usually have a  "Collectables" section (also offering coins, postcards, medals, banknotes, etc.), and this is often the best place to sell banknotes. We have in recent auctions seen some exceptional prices realised for notes.
Valuers. If your need is not to sell your notes, but to have them valued (for example for insurance, for estate valuation, or other tax purposes) then we can provide this service also. The same terms apply as for valuations of stamps.

If you are a collector looking to buy notes for your collection; We usually have a stock of many hundreds of notes available for retail sale, from some which are just a few pence each, through to scarcer notes with much higher prices. Stocks can vary considerably from time to time, so if you are travelling a distance it is worth contacting us first to enquire about our stock levels.
Auctions are mentioned above, and it is always worth watching these to see what is available.
We do not normally publish price lists.


See also -
Separate page about Jack Nicklaus five pound notes. 
1 October 2006 front page article in Scotland on Sunday in which we are quoted (not accurately, of course . . . . )
http://scotlandonsunday.scotsman.com/scotland.cfm?id=1451852006

Page created Monday 2 October 2006. Last updated Wednesday 8 January 2019. Copyright Robert Murray 2006-2019.

Robert Murray Stamp Shop 5 & 6 Inverleith Gardens Edinburgh  Scotland EH3 5PU Tel. 0131 552 1220 or 0131 478 7021 Homepage; www.stamp-shop.com Email; [email protected]

How to Order Mail Orders are accepted by post, telephone, email, or fax. We accept payments by cash, cheque, Visa/MasterCard, Switch/Delta, and some foreign currencies. Basically, we charge [the advertised price of the goods] plus [the actual price of postage] plus [�1 per order handling charge].  Full details can be seen at our How to Order page.

Our Shop is open four days each week, and customers are always, of course, welcome. We carry very wide stocks of the whole world - much, much more than is listed on our website. Full shop information at this link.