Catalog
50 Dollars Federal Reserve Note, colored
| Issuer | Federal Reserve |
|---|---|
| Year | 2004-2017 |
| Type | Standard circulation banknote |
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| Obverse description | Central intaglio vignette of Ulysses S. Grant framed within an oval, set against a colour-shifted background with a large numeral '50' in optically variable ink at lower right and a subtle underprint of the United States flag. The Treasurer's signature and the Federal Reserve Bank seal appear to the left of the portrait, while the Secretary of the Treasury's signature and the Treasury Department seal are positioned to the right. Microprinting and a security thread reading 'USA 50' are incorporated into the design. |
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| Protection description | Watermark portrait of Ulysses S. Grant visible when held to light; embedded security thread printed with 'USA 50' readable in ultraviolet light; optically variable ink numeral '50' at lower right of obverse shifts from gold to green when tilted; microprinting incorporated into design elements; denomination numeral |
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| Comments |
The 2004 redesign of the $50 was the second note in the BEP's post-Series 1996 color program, following the $20 introduced in 2003. The most deliberate security addition was the embedded polyester thread, which glows yellow under ultraviolet light and is printed with "USA 50" — a specificity chosen precisely because the $50 had historically been one of the more commonly counterfeited mid-range denominations in the United States.
Color-shifting ink on the numeral shifts from copper to green when tilted, a feature carried forward from the earlier redesign cycle but updated here with a more dramatic visible shift than the preceding series achieved.