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Amazing pictures of large U.S. bills.

bep.treas.gov — Check out these pictures of the fronts and backs of different versions of U.S. bills ranging from $500 to $10,000.

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  • MuZiKMafia, on 10/12/2007, -5/+90*presses Ctrl+P*

    hehehehe
    • anthony1124, on 10/12/2007, -29/+11or you can just hit the "print" link at the bottom of the page.
    • shrewd, on 10/12/2007, -18/+3looks like monopoly money!
    • ronmexico, on 10/12/2007, -3/+21It's all about the Hamiltons baby.
    • wired4u, on 10/12/2007, -10/+1Apple p seems to work ok, I was able to print the page, what did it say?
    • newevilmind, on 10/12/2007, -4/+5in 1918 why would someone need/have a $10,000 bill???
    • guardian653, on 10/12/2007, -0/+5these were not meant for normal people, they were used mainly used for transfering funds between banks.
  • ddrirc, on 10/12/2007, -22/+6I thought bills stopped at 100 and everyone used bank transfers or credit for anything higher (unless it was stacks of hundreds)
    • ChoadNamath, on 10/12/2007, -2/+26Notice the latest date is 1934. They don't make them anymore.
    • SuperSloth, on 10/12/2007, -1/+21Yeah, or you could... I dunno... read the page:

      "Currency notes of denominations above $100 are not available from the Department of the Treasury, the Federal Reserve System, or the Bureau of Engraving and Printing. On July 14, 1969, the Department of the Treasury and the Federal Reserve System announced that currency notes in denominations of $500, $1,000, $5,000, and $10,000 would be discontinued immediately due to lack of use. Although they were issued until 1969, they were last printed in 1945."
    • generalleoff, on 10/12/2007, -0/+8$500 bills are still somewhat common in public circulation but they are no longer printed and haven't been sense the 1940's. I have seen $1000 bills in public circulation as well but they are far less common. The highest bill I have ever had in my pocket was a $500. All denominations above $100 were recalled in the late 1960's or early 1970's and as soon as these bills make it bank in the hands of a bank they are removed from circulation. The ones that still remain out there are still legal currency though.
    • everfalling, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4i'm thinking, given time, these bills will turn out to be worth far more than their denomination, esp if the banks yank them up and destroy them if you spend them.
    • diceone, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4I work for chase bank and we had a merchant (subway) accept and try to deposit a $200 bill.
      I'm serious.
    • thepotoo, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3Well, $200 bills do exist. At least on teh interweb.
      http://www.msgr.ca/msgr-3/bush_200bill_cl.gif
    • Sippi, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3My dad somehow got his hands on a $1000 bill years ago. He now keeps it in a safe deposit box, because these bills are now worth a lot more than their current value due to their rarity. They have become more of a prized collector items even.
  • Moremoe, on 10/12/2007, -12/+2I'll take anyone of those.
    • Metabolife, on 10/12/2007, -13/+0Why? You think you'll find anyone to take them? Maybe sell them on ebay and have the gov't come down on your ass.
    • sapo916, on 10/12/2007, -10/+2Why would the govt do anything to my ass for having money, unless I paid them to

      but thats... gay
  • spacedyevest, on 10/12/2007, -2/+9these large bank notes were used to transfer money from one branch to another branch before there was ever such a thing called the internet.....I pretty sure they were never used in circulation
    • short_man, on 10/12/2007, -8/+1...or computers for that matter
    • Jozer99, on 10/12/2007, -7/+5Ya, sure, then they cut them up into 100 pieces and locked them in a damp cabinet, the next day, voila!, some small denomination bills for putting into circulation.
    • pr3d4t0r, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4From the site: "These notes are legal tender and may be found in circulation today; however, most notes still in circulation are probably in the hands of private numismatic dealers and collectors."

      Expensive hobby.
  • SuperBTZ, on 10/12/2007, -0/+46It feels like the 10,000 bill should have an ( ! ) at the end of it.
    • emil1212, on 10/12/2007, -3/+6Why the hell is the Sec. of Treasury on the $10,000? Run out of more important people (presidents) or historical figures to put on our country's largest bill? And Hamilton has double dipped, lucky!
    • ggko, on 10/12/2007, -1/+5There's an even larger, $100,000 note with Woodrow Wilson's portrait.

      ...and a $1,329,063 note with Alfred E. Neuman.
    • GreatBambino, on 10/12/2007, -2/+1So you want to put a famous person on a bill... that no one will see? Is that right?
    • EdLesMann, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2For those that dont get the "$1,329,063 note with Alfred E. Neuman." joke mentioned by ggko

      check out this link at the very bottom of the page (very last paragraph)

      http://www.algebra.com/algebra/about/history/MAD-Magazine.wikipedia
    • mcbesq, on 10/12/2007, -1/+2Emil:

      Hamilton wasn't just a Secretary of the Treasury. He was the first Secretary of the Treasury. He also founded the New York Stock Exchange - the first stock exchange in the world. Plus he was Washington's aide-de-camp during the Revolutionary War. He also structured the payment of war debt following the Revolutionary War. He also was one of the writers of the Federalist Papers. Not only that, a provision in the US Constitution was specifically drafted to keep Hamilton from being President. Jefferson despised Hamilton and inserted the "native born" requirement to bar Hamilton from the Presidency - Hamilton was born in the Dutch West Indies.

      I think Hamilton earned the right to be on both the $10 and the $10,000. Before you bitch about who is on "our country's largest bill," how about learning about our country's founders. If you still disagree, read "Alexander Hamilton" by Ron Chernow.

      Bambino: read half of the comments on this page - the $10,000 is a Reserve Note. It was not for circulation by the public.
    • emil1212, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1McBesg:

      1st off, Hamilton's not on the 10,000, it's Salmon P. Chase. I wasn't complaining about Hamilton, and furthermore, thanks for the history about Hamilton that I already know, since I've been to his house that's still up in Harlem. Did U know that he died in a duel???
  • SoulMaster2, on 10/12/2007, -3/+5http://www.bep.treas.gov/document.cfm/5/43/135

    Print, and use in a vending machine...

    But don't tell the FBI I said that
  • opps12, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2does anyone know why the $100,000 bill can't legally be held by currency collectors?
    • snowthrower, on 10/12/2007, -1/+7The $100,000 bill is for transfering large amounts of money to other treasuries, it was used as an alternative to backing assets in the treasury with gold; it is not meant for currency collectors, since it is only for treasury purposes.
    • vertigoblue, on 10/12/2007, -1/+1didnt you see cliffhanger? god! /napoleon voice
    • cawpin, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1They were recalled to be collected and destroyed in the early 60s I think.

      Go here http://www.frbsf.org/currency/

      It is a very cool site. They even have a picture of the front and back of the $100,000 bill.

      http://www.frbsf.org/currency/world/nocirc/m2.html
  • Rmplstltskn, on 10/12/2007, -2/+18Can anyone break a 10,000? I only have 10,000's.
  • JK1150, on 10/12/2007, -1/+3Wasn't there a big controversy over scanner software that doesn't allow you to scan in dollar bills, yet now the have scanned copies on the internet?
  • Warptera, on 10/12/2007, -1/+5Amazing is an overstatement for this...

    About the scanning. US currency (or any other for that matter) is an extremely difficult task. In order for decent laundering of money to happen, one would need to a press with the imprint of bills to print their money.

    Not to mention these have the words "Copy" plastered on them... :)
    • Bigcat1021, on 10/12/2007, -2/+9Didn't you know? "Amazing" is the official word of Digg.com.

      http://www.digg.com/search?search=amazing&submit=Submit
    • Joe_rigby, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Well, plus the consistency (feel) of us currency, it's reactivity to those little pens that can tell you if it's real or not, the electromagnetic signature different denominations give off when under the testing equipment. Yea, it wouldn't be easy - the best way they defeated the pen technique was to bleach $1 dollar bills and print them up about $19 in value, but the newer security features make it harder than ever.
    • magma, on 10/12/2007, -1/+0Laundering or counterfeiting? In order for decent counterfeiting to occur, one would need a press with an imprint of the bill, the special paper ( http://www.crane.com/currency ) that US currency is printed on, and of course, ink.
  • Arch, on 10/12/2007, -3/+4The dude on the $10,000 bill is Salmon Chase.


    What a name.
    • mcbesq, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2He was Lincoln's Secretary of the Treasury and extremely critical of Lincoln. Abe kept him as part of the Cabinet because, unlike many other Presidents, he actually welcomed critical viewpoints.
  • aplusplus, on 10/12/2007, -0/+7Ahhhh, I can't handle another "amazing" picture tonight!
    • ggko, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Then I won't show you my amazing photos of Asian lingerie models playing DDR on a trampoline.
  • cduquette, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4I'm glad we don't see these bills in the wild. I work as a cashier part time, and I find it annoying people try to get change for $100 after buying a pack of Tictacs. I can only image $1,000.

    "Can you break a thousand?"
    [runs out screaming]
  • alex.will, on 10/12/2007, -1/+16I don't care if its Elvis & Bigfoot flying a UFO, 415x160 jpgs are never 'amazing' to me.
    • culebra, on 10/12/2007, -4/+2Best comment ever! I digg anything that has elvis, ufo's, & big foot. Woot! You know, there should be a digg comment contest!
    • wired4u, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1I am sure they purposely did that to prevent someone from printing high resolution copy's on their ink jet printer
  • jus1haz2, on 10/12/2007, -3/+1Wow i wonder if those are easier to counterfiet
  • argoff, on 10/12/2007, -8/+3I know people are going to think I'm crazy. But get familiar with these, you are going to be using them a lot sooner than you think. The US account deficit is really really bad, and potential derivative contract defaults go into the trillions if not hundreds of trillions. I know most people don't remember the massive price increases in the late 70's, but in all fairness the fundamentals now are way worse than then. Recently, gas has been going up a lot in price, because the dollar is going down a lot in value. In addition, today Walmart can have prices changed in all stores within 4 hours, and currency markets can trade trillions of dollars per hour. When it hits the fan, it will be uglier than anything you've ever seen.
    • gleffler, on 10/12/2007, -2/+4My Digg Protip:

      If you have to start your comment with "I know people are going to think I'm crazy...," you're probably better off sparing Digg from your conspiracy theory about the world economy/the FBI/Microsoft/Linux/whatever else. We know that the world could end tomorrow, etc. etc., but really, when you say things like that, people don't just *think* you're crazy... you demonstrate it.
    • aquax, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2So I should hang on to my $10,000 bill to buy aluminum foil hats?
    • argoff, on 10/12/2007, -1/+0Well, fine I'm a crazy looser on digg, but I'm a winner in the real world. I made an absolute freaking killing buying gold and silver related investments while people were saying I was a foolish idiot. They still say I'm crazy, and are saying that gold's topped out even though TA alone says it's going to 1600. (which is probably a minimum, considering how the fed will likely act) try looking up TRE on the stock charts and compare it to US bonds.
  • Odo08, on 10/12/2007, -0/+5I liked the "lack of use" statement in the first paragraph. "Lack of use" must be code language for "horded by drug lords and money launderers."

  • rjp_wayne2018, on 10/12/2007, -4/+3what was the value of 10,000$ back in the 30s?
    • subway18223, on 10/12/2007, -1/+2More than enough to buy a house or 2.
    • rocjoe71, on 10/12/2007, -3/+5Approximately? $10,000. Sheesh.
  • JFetch, on 10/12/2007, -2/+4I wish they would go back to printing $500 bills. I hate having to get a wad of hundreds to pay to get my car fixed.
    • Wyattx17, on 10/12/2007, -2/+11
      "I wish they would go back to printing $500 bills. I hate having to get a wad of hundreds to pay to get my car fixed."

      You mean for GAS.
    • addakorn, on 10/12/2007, -1/+4If you pay a wad of hundreds to repair your car often enough that it is inconvienent for you to handle the currency, I think you may want to look into a different car.
    • addakorn, on 10/12/2007, -2/+1@Wyattx17: What are you talking about, it only cost me $230 to fill my tanks. A $500 bill would be overkill!
    • JFetch, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2It broke down one time since I bought it. I'm just bitter because that was 2 days ago.
  • ThatsUnpossible, on 10/12/2007, -9/+3Approximately $10,000
  • Zero2aHero, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3I wouldn't mind one bit if they censored the word amazing from this website just as they do swears.
  • RoboPimp3000, on 10/12/2007, -1/+1On a related note, the new $10 Bills are the color of piss.It literally looks like someone fished it out of the toilet. I can't believe that was the best design they came up with.
    • everfalling, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1yeah i thought that was odd too.

      why dont we go with those plastic bills like countires like new zealand use? i'm thinking THAT would create a large leap in anti-counterfiting. also, we can have partially see through bills!
    • abbott75, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Australia did the plasitc notes first :P...
  • burnt1ce85, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1If those $10,000 bills could collect 4% compound annual interest since 1969, it would be worth $42,000 dollars today excluding inflation. darn.....
  • sdaf, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2Why isn't there a pyramid with an all seeing eye on any of these bills?
    • everfalling, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1these are federal reserve notes. why should big brother look upon itself? :-D

      note: yes i know the pyramid doesn't stand for that.
    • sdaf, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2I'm sorry if this is a stupid question to all americans, but isn't all USD federal reserve? Forgive a non-informed swede :D
    • cawpin, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Yes, they are. They all say "Federal Reserve Note" at the top.
  • everfalling, on 10/12/2007, -3/+4they should make a bill with Bush's face on it and have it worth minus several trillion dollars to be used durning wartime against 3rd world countries.
  • elroy, on 10/12/2007, -4/+2AMAZING!*!&@&$#@$##$(&*#$&*(#$&*(*(#$#*($
  • mhearne, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2If we could only see the small print.

    From http://ecclesia.org/truth/fiat.html

    1934-1962, Federal Reserve Notes, no security:

    This note is legal tender for all debts, public and private, and is redeemable in lawful money at the United States Treasury, or at any Federal Reserve Bank.

    1963-present, Federal Reserve Notes, no security:

    This note is legal tender for all debts, public and private.

    So the "money" that we have now isn't payable in anything - the paper is the money. Those of you who aren't old enough to remember silver money really don't know the difference, but what we call cash today really amounts to store coupons and chuck-e-cheese tokens. None of it is really worth anything anymore, they just print it as they need it.

    I have seen a $500 dollar bill, but it didn't stay in sight long. Things like that never do, and that was about 1964 or 65.
  • jczer68, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2LOL, yeah right using $10,000 bills is really practical, you'd probably need a ton of paperwork, proof of ownership and a certificate of authenticity just to use them. Then on top of that an anal probe for good measure.

    Anyways digg.
    • mhearne, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0When those bills were in production, the person holding them didn't have to prove anything at all. As long as he reported his income and payed his taxes, the cash in his hand was no ones business. It still isn't.

      All the stuff about showing proof is very new (a policy less than 20 years old). I have a friend who manages a car lot, and he has to call the IRS several times a week when people bring in large amounts of cash. He would really prefer to spit in the governments eye, and so would I.

  • Pimptastic, on 10/12/2007, -1/+2I remember seeing a $500 bill in 89 i belive. first and only time i saw one.

    I have seen a $10,000 bill at the Smithsonian.
  • MarkBlu, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Large_denomination_bills_in_U.S._currency
    Some more good pics :)
  • siliconentity, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2Back in about 1969 my grandfather (who was rich) put up the whole extended family at a mountain resort near Durango, Colorado. Each family group had its own cabin, and we all stayed there for a week. I think it was the 50th wedding anniversary of my grandparents.

    At the end of the week he paid for the whole thing with several $1000 bills. We kids were agog to see them. I still remember the distinctive curvature of the printing of 1,000 in the corners.

    I doubt that paying for things with $1000 bill was very common even back then, but my grandfather was a Texas millionaire with a flair for the dramatic.
    • Mac2492, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3$1,000 dollar bills - dramatic? Pfft... You haven't seen 1,000 one dollar bills. Now THAT'S dramatic. (Especially when you launch them up into the air and watch them float down. "OMG MONEY!")
  • gypsyjoe, on 10/12/2007, -1/+0I am that amazed I can't type any more.
  • acontorer, on 10/12/2007, -2/+1How are these amazing?? No digg.
  • txmail, on 10/12/2007, -1/+3http://www.bep.treas.gov/document.cfm/5/60/173

    Ha Ha! 50 Cent!
  • WaterDragon, on 10/12/2007, -1/+1It's funny that this article appeared on the digg front page today, just a few stories before
    "How to Scan Money into Photoshop".

    What's up with that? Is this telling us something?
    I wondered how everyone but me seems to be getting richer all the time.
    ;-)
  • WaterDragon, on 10/12/2007, -1/+1Does anyone remember when paper currency was actually backed by deposits of gold, before we went the way of a 'total scam' by the international banking cartel known as the Federal Reserve? (It is not part of the US government, yet it controls the finances and loans money, at interest, to the US government.)

    http://www.the7thfire.com/SR/mandrake_mechanism.htm

    • prothall, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2Yes, which is why, when people finally realize that US currency is actually just a pretty picture on some paper and panic, the country will go straight to hell.
    • ggko, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Dollars are no longer backed by gold (or silver, or anything else with intrinsic value,) because if we come upon a huge store of it tomorrow, inflation ensues. Spain experienced massive inflation when they brought back home all the gold they sacked out of the Americas.
  • jdonner, on 10/12/2007, -1/+0A digg by a 12 year old. His next digg is probably going to show how they make a Batman outfit.
  • jweinraub, on 10/12/2007, -1/+0why is this even digg worthy? that web page has been around for several years already.
  • stalky14, on 10/12/2007, -1/+1They need to bring back the $2 bill, and come out with a $1 coin and stick with it. I liked the Sacajawea and S.B.A. dollars, dammit.
    • prothall, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1I like dollar coins, but the Sacajawea dollars weren't very spiffy. They were also basically marketed as toys by companies, which should have been illegal.
    • ratsg, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1the $2 bill never went away. go down to your local bank, and buy all you want
    • stalky14, on 10/12/2007, -1/+2From what I could tell on the site, $2 bills were last made in 1976. They just haven't officially been taken out of circulation. Where does it say they are still in production?

      Now, after going to the US Mint site, Dollar Coins are still in production, but they're only making a few million a year, so they aren't anywhere near critical mass yet. Not like quarters where they make hundreds of millions a year. Of course thy've been making Kennedy half-dollars since the late 60's and how many of those do you see day-to-day? They seem to be ramping up on the Dollar coins though, albeit slowly.

      I think vending machine acceptance is the key to a big takeoff on the dollar coins. I've often wished I could just plunk a single coin into the snack machine at work, especially since that damn bill reader never works right.
  • Jaxim, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1The artwork on the bills from 1918 are so much better than the ones that they make today. Too bad the treasury department doesn't employ artists of this caliber when redesigning money.
  • prothall, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1It should be duly noted that there were bills of larger issue, but they were used exclusively for transactions within the federal government and are usually printed with orange ink. While illegal for private citizens to possess, some are possessed by individuals due to boxes of them being thrown out of government building windows during a fire.

    I think the largest one ever issued was $100,000, featuring Woody Wilson's face.
    • cawpin, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0Good job with the reading there bud. That was already mentioned several times above.
  • peter303, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0Urban Legend about a million dollar bill:

    There was this story about a customer at Walmart(?) trying to buy
    stuff using a million dollar bill (you've seen those gag ones with
    the current US president). Equally amazing the store clerk called
    a manager to say the register was broken in not accepting the bill.
    I couldnt find out whther this legend had a factual basis.

    http://www.muhammadanism.org/Gospel/Stories/counterfeit_money_1.htm
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