Expert: Jim Lawniczak - 7/5/2010

Question
i have a $100  bill that has a star on it
it is a 1996
the star is after the serial number
i've had banks look at it ...and  noone has ever seen one like it

i've had coin dealers look at it and noone knows why this star is there
i've been told they can tell it's not stamped on
possibly from the mint???    is it worth more then the $ 100  face value???

Answer
The star notes are not unusual, and I can't imagine very many coin dealers (unless they are wholly not involved in paper money) not knowing what they are.  Yes, it is from the mint and it means that an error at the mint occurred and certain serial numbers will not be used as those bills were destroyed.  The star then notes that the serial numbers on those replaced bills are what are on this note.  In some older notes and series, particularly in the 30s, they have extra value, and it may depend on the series and on the serial number, but probably not so much for more modern notes.  Best to check with an expert.  Try going to www.ebay.com and doing a search for $100 star note 1996 and see if any are being sold.  See the below sites for discussion, Jim Lawniczak

http://money.howstuffworks.com/question703.htm

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Star_note