United States two-dollar bill

Two dollars
(United States)
Value$2.00
Width6.14 in [before 1929: 7.375 inches (187.3 mm)] ≈ 155.95 mm
Height2.61 in [before 1929: 3.125 inches (79.4 mm)] ≈ 66.29 mm
WeightApprox. 1[1] g
Security featuresSecurity fibers, raised printing[2]
Material used75% cotton
25% linen
Years of printing1862–1966, 1976–present (Federal Reserve Note, current form)
Obverse
DesignThomas Jefferson
Design date1928
Reverse
DesignTrumbull's Declaration of Independence
Design date1976

The United States two-dollar bill (US$2) is a current denomination of United States currency. A portrait of Thomas Jefferson, the third president of the United States (1801–1809), is featured on the obverse of the note. The reverse features an engraving of John Trumbull's painting Declaration of Independence (c. 1818).[3]

Throughout the $2 bill's pre-1929 life as a large-sized note, it was issued as a United States Note, a National Bank Note, a Silver Certificate, a Treasury or "Coin" Note, and a Federal Reserve Bank Note. When U.S. currency was redesigned and reduced to its current size, in 1928, the $2 bill was issued only as a United States Note. Production continued until 1966 (1967), when United States Notes were phased out; the $2 denomination was discontinued until 1976, when it was reissued as a Federal Reserve Note, with a new reverse design.

Because of businesses' banking policies that do not rely on $2 bills, fewer are produced and therefore they circulate much less than other denominations of U.S. currency. This scarcity in circulation has contributed to low public awareness that the bill is still being printed and has inspired several urban legends and misinformation about $2 bills and has occasionally caused difficulties for persons trying to spend them. Some merchants are unfamiliar with $2 bills and question their validity or authenticity. In spite of its relatively low production figures, the apparent scarcity of the $2 bill in daily commerce also indicates that significant numbers of the notes are removed from circulation and collected by many people who believe $2 bills to be scarcer and more valuable than they actually are.[4]

  1. ^ Cite error: The named reference GRdxk was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ "$2 Note | U.S. Currency Education Program". Archived from the original on July 30, 2020. Retrieved July 20, 2020.
  3. ^ Program, U. S. Currency Education. "$2 Note". www.uscurrency.gov. Retrieved March 20, 2024.
  4. ^ Cite error: The named reference 1KQ72 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).