Unlike their closest counterparts in collectibles, currency, especially fractional currency, Columbian Exposition Portrait passes and other Expo tickets are not generally graded in the fashion of U.S. denominational notes. Even though the engravers and printers from American Bank Note Company put out the portrait passes, as they did many examples of fractional currency, the portrait passes and other miscellaneous tickets were never made for use in the marketplace as currency.

As a result many, if not most, of extant passes are in excellent condition. Keepsakes, they have been preserved in drawers, the pages of books, and sometimes-unfortunately- affixed to scrapbooks, so their condition has not degraded in the manner of currency.

That being said, the passes could still have been damaged or degraded in several ways. Though handling time should have been short, some may have been folded, torn, or their corners worn. Patrons caught in a rain might pass on passes with water damage, or they may have been stored carelessly, leaving them susceptible to smoke or fumes in the home, and possible discoloration. Some people, as mentioned, may have scrapbooked them with adhesives, or tape, or used a pin to put them on a wall to show them off. Again, the faded ink splatters found in the fields and margins of the passes are ubiquitous, and have no bearing on their value.

Ninety percent of the passes and tickets offered on our site will fall into the Almost Uncirculated or Uncirculated area of grading. If the pass falls below or above those designations we will try and mention as much in the descriptions. That is, if a ticket has a problem, some definition lost through tape removal, or a pin hole in one or more corners, we will make note of it for you, and it should be visible in the photos of the passes. If it is like new, we will, again, mention it in describing the item. The values of the items will reflect particular strengths and weaknesses, as well as rarity.

Counterfeiting, as with currency, has never been an issue with the Expo passes. They were only good for a certain span of time, and their designs so elaborately wrought that counterfeiting was more apt to be done on real money. If anyone does find a pass they expect or can show to be a fake, please return it for a refund, we'd like to have it.

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