Did you know a dollar bill has hidden pictures, flecks of color, and mysterious symbols? What do all those random letters and Latin phrases mean, anyway?
Since 1973, the dollar bill has had no value tied to it. You cannot trade in a dollar to the government for gold, silver, or any other commodity. The value of the nation’s currency is related to the decree by the government that a dollar is legal tender for all debts. This means if someone attempts to pay a debt using dollars, the person being paid must accept the money or the law no longer recognizes the debt. This is important enough that the phrase is printed on every bill the government creates.
It is also vital for the nation’s citizens to agree that the bills have value. If the members of a society decided that they did not believe in the currency, it would quickly be worth no more than the paper it is printed on. For the record, each bill costs the government 6.4 cents to print.
Bills are made from a blend of linen and cotton, wich is why they don’t fall apart in the wash the way paper does. If you look closely, you can see red and blue silk fibers woven throughout the bill. The threads are thought to be an anti-counterfeit measure. Hint: Look in the white spaces on the face of the bill for little bits of the colored thread.
The black seal wht the big letter in the middle signifies the Federal Reserve bank that placed the order for the bill. A=Boston, B=New York City, C=Philadelphia, D=Cleveland, E=Richmond, VA., F=Atlanta, G=Chicago, H=St. Louis, I=Minneapolis, J=Kansas, K=Dallas.
The letter also corresponds to the black number that is repeated four times on the face of the bill. For example, if you have a bill from Dallas with the letter K, then the number on the bill will be 11 because K is the eleventh letter in the alphabet.
Many people believe they can see a tiny owl (some say it’s a spider) next to the large “1” on the upper right of the bill. If you look at the shield shape surrounding the “1”, the tiny owl is on the top left corner. Some people associate the owl with Masonic symbols or anti-counterfeit measures.
The green back of the dollar bill features the two sides of The Great Seal of the United States. The founding fathers (Ben Franklin, John Adams, and Thomas Jefferson) approved it design in 1782. The seal provides great insight into the values of the newborn nation and, like the Constitution, provides a direct link to it formative days.
The Latin phrase, Annuit Coeptis, on the back of the bill is translated as “God has favored our undertakings”. Many founders believed that God’s will was behind the successful creation of the United States. The words Novus Ordo Seclorun means “New order of the ages”, signifying the beginning of the new American Era.
The Roman numerals, MDCCLXXVI, on the pyramid are for the year 1776, when the Declaration of Independence was signed. M=1,000, D=500, CC=200, L=50, XX=20, VI=6. Add the numerals together and you get 1776. The pyramid is a symbol of “strength and duration”. Many believe that its unfinished state signifies that our nation remained unfinished. The pyramid also stops at 13 steps, the number of the original colonies. The “Eye of Providence” is a visual representation of the words Annuit Coeptis, and reinforces the founders’ notion that God looked upon the endeavor of the new nation with favor. Scholars have traced versions of the symbol as far back as the ancient Egyptians.
E Pluribus Unum means “Out of many, one”. The 13 colonies came together to form one nation. The founders wanted an animal native to America to be the nation’s symbol, hence the bald eagle. The eagle holds arrows and olive branches in it talons, signifying war and peace.
Fun Fact: Go to the website Where’s George? and enter the serial number of your bill. If the bill has been in circulation long enough, you might be able to see where you bill has been as it travels from wallets to registers and back.
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