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40 Dollars 'Continental Currency' - United States
| Issuer | Continental Congress of the United States |
|---|---|
| Year | 1778 |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Size | 95 × 71 mm |
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| Obverse description | Central vignette enclosed within a decorative typographic border presents a radiant eye above an altar encircled by thirteen stars, symbolising the union of the original colonies, with the motto CONFEDERATION on a banner within the circular frame. The denomination XL DOLLARS appears in letterpress at lower right, accompanied by the statutory redemption text entitling the bearer to forty Spanish milled dollars in gold or silver pursuant to the Congressional resolution of 26 September 1778. The entire composition is executed in the colonial letterpress tradition characteristic of Continental Currency issues authorised by the Continental Congress. |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Reverse description | The central field is occupied by a large nature-printed vignette of a thistle or similarly lobed leaf plant, rendered directly from an actual botanical specimen pressed onto the plate — a distinctive anti-counterfeiting technique employed by Benjamin Franklin and continued by Hall and Sellers — enclosed within a double-ruled typographic border with foliate corner ornaments. The denomination Forty DOLLARS is set in decorative letterpress script at the head of the note, and the printer's imprint appears at the foot. The overall printing surface retains the characteristic warm tan tone of the period rag paper stock. |
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| Protection description | Botanical nature print on reverse produced by pressing an actual plant specimen onto the printing plate, creating a unique and nearly impossible to counterfeit impression — an anti-forgery method pioneered by Benjamin Franklin and standard on Continental Currency issues. |
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