Euro banknotes
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The euro (EUR or €) is the single currency for the European Union and currently 13 of its member states. The euro was formally established as a unit of exchange on 1 January 1999, and euro banknotes and coins (see euro coins) entered circulation in 12 member states on 1 January 2002. On 1 January 2007 Slovenia, a state that joined the EU in May 2004, became the 13th state to join the euro area. The remaining EU states with the exception of the United Kingdom and Denmark are required to adopt the euro after meeting the necessary economic conditions to enter the eurozone.
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[edit] Denominations
There are seven different denominations, each having a distinctive colour and size. The design for each of them has a common theme of European architecture in various artistic periods. The front (or recto) of the note features windows or gateways while the back (or verso) has bridges. Care has been taken so that the architectural examples do not represent any actual existing monument, so as not to induce jealousy and controversy in the choice of which monument should be depicted [1].
Common to all notes are the European flag, the initials of the European Central Bank in five versions (BCE, ECB, EZB, ΕΚΤ, EKP), a map of Europe on the back, the name "Euro" in both Latin and Greek script and the signature of the current president of the ECB. The 12 stars of the EU are also incorporated into every note.
The euro banknote designs were chosen out of 44 proposals in a design competition, launched by The Council of the European Monetary Institute (EMI) on 12 February 1996. The winning entry, created by Robert Kalina from the Oesterreichische Nationalbank, was selected on 3 December 1996.
[edit] Description of banknotes
| Denomination | Dimensions | Dominant Colour | Architecture | Period | Printer code position |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 euro | €5 | 120 × 62 mm | Grey | Classical | < 5th century | left image edge |
| 10 euro | €10 | 127 × 67 mm | Red | Romanesque | 11-12th centuries | 8 o'clock star |
| 20 euro | €20 | 133 × 72 mm | Blue | Gothic | 13-14th centuries | 9 o'clock star |
| 50 euro | €50 | 140 × 77 mm | Orange | Renaissance | 15-16th centuries | right image edge |
| 100 euro | €100 | 147 × 82 mm | Green | Baroque & Rococo | 17-18th centuries | right of 9 o'clock star |
| 200 euro | €200 | 153 × 82 mm | Yellow-brown | Iron and glass | 19-20th centuries | above 7 o'clock star |
| 500 euro | €500 | 160 × 82 mm | Purple | Modern 20th century | 20-21st centuries | 9 o'clock star |
The "paper" used for Euro banknotes is in fact 100% pure cotton fibre,[citation needed] which improves their durability as well as imparting a distinctive feel.
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The following member overseas territories are shown: the Azores, French Guiana, Guadeloupe, Madeira, Martinique, Réunion, and the Canary Islands. Cyprus and Malta are not shown, as they only joined the EU in 2004; also Malta is too small to be shown, with the minimum size for depiction being 400km².[2]
[edit] Special features for people with impaired sight
The design of euro banknotes include several characteristics suggested in cooperation with organizations representing blind people. These characteristics aid both people who are visually impaired (people who can see the banknotes, but cannot necessarily read the printing on them) and those who are entirely blind.
Euro banknotes increase in size with increasing denominations, which helps both the visually impaired and the blind. The predominant colouring of the notes alternates between “warm” and “cool” hues in adjacent denominations (see the chart above), making it still harder to confuse two similar denominations for those who can see the colour. The printing of the denominations is intaglio printing, which allows the ink to be felt by sensitive fingers, allowing some people to distinguish the printed denominations by touch alone. Lower denominations (5, 10, 20) have smooth bands along one side of the note containing holograms; higher denominations have smooth, square patches with holograms. Finally, the €200 and €500 notes have distinctive tactile patterns along the bottom edges of the notes: the €200 note has vertical lines running from the bottom centre to the right-hand corner, and the €500 note has diagonal lines running down the right-hand edge.
It can be useful to fold a note between two fingers and then use the fingers as a length gauge to distinguish one note from another.
Although there have been other currencies predating the euro that were specifically designed in similar ways (different sizes, colours, and ridges) to aid the visually impaired, the introduction of the euro constitutes the first time that authorities have consulted associations representing the blind before, rather than after, the release of the currency.
[edit] Security features
The ECB has described some of the more rudimentary security features of the Euro note, allowing the general public to authenticate their currency at a glance. However, in the interest of security, the exhaustive list of these features is a closely-guarded secret.
Still, between the official descriptions and independent discoveries made by observant users, it is thought that the Euro notes include at least thirty different security features. These include:
Holograms: the €5, €10 and €20 notes carry a holographic band to the right of the front side. This band is imprinted with the note's denomination; e.g., "€5 €5 €5...." in the case of the five-euro note.
In the case of the €50 notes and higher, the band is replaced with a holographic decal.
Variable colour ink appears on the lower right corner of back side of the €50 and higher. When observed from different angles, the colour varies between purple and green.
Checksum: each note has a unique serial number. The serial number is validated using a checksum. The following is an extract from the europa.union.euro FAQ that explains how to check the validity of a serial number:
- Replace the initial letter by its position in the alphabet (that is L is 12, M is 13,..., Z is 26).
- Add up this number and every digit of the serial number. For example:
- U08217383936 is 21 + 0 + 8 + 2 + 1 + 7 + 3 + 8 + 3 + 9 + 3 + 6 = 71
- Add up all the digits of this new number, redo as many times as necessary until you obtain a one-digit number. Alternatively computer programmers may find the familiar MOD 9 function easier to implement. This gives the same result.
The resulting number must be 8 - in the example above, 7 + 1 = 8 or 71 MOD 9 = 8, so it's correct.
Watermark: Each denomination is printed on uniquely-watermarked paper. This may be observed by holding the note up to the light.
Registration: The note denomination in the upper-left corner of the front of each note is printed incompletely, as is the denomination in the upper-right corner of the back. When held up to the light, this denomination is visible in its entirety. Genuine notes will exhibit perfect alignment (or 'registration') between the front and back. If the note has been printed incorrectly, i.e. by a counterfeiter, these numbers may appear poorly aligned.
Texture: some areas of the notes have a different texture from others. the BCE ECB EZB text is one of them.
Raised printing: some characters are raised to the touch.
Bar code: when held up to the light, metallic bars can be seen to the right of the watermark. The number and width of these bars indicates the value of the note. When scanned, these bars are converted to Manchester code.
| Note | Barcode | Manchester |
|---|---|---|
| €5 | 0110 10 | 100 |
| €10 | 0101 10 | 110 |
| €20 | 1010 1010 | 0000 |
| €50 | 0110 1010 | 1000 |
| €100 | 0101 1010 | 1100 |
| €200 | 0101 0110 | 1110 |
| €500 | 0101 0101 | 1111 |
(looked at from the reverse, a dark bar is 1, a bright bar 0)
EURion constellation: Euro banknotes contain a pattern known as the EURion constellation which can be used to detect their identity as banknotes to prevent copying. Some older photocopiers are programmed to reject images containing this pattern.
Digital watermark: Like the EURion constellation, a Digimarc digital watermark in embedded in the banknotes' designs. Recent versions of image editors, such as Adobe Photoshop or Paint Shop Pro refuse to process banknotes. Steven J. Murdoch's description.
Security Thread: A black thread in the middle of the note is seen only against a light source. It shows the denomination of the note, along with the word "Euro". This thread is magnetic.
Magnetic ink: Some areas feature magnetic ink. The rightmost church window on the €20 note is magnetic, as well as the large zero above it.
Infra-red and ultra-violet watermarks: when seen in the near infrared, the banknotes will show darker areas in different zones depending on the denomination. Ultraviolet light will make the EURion constellation show in sharper contrast, and also some fluorescent threads stand out.
Micro-print: the texture lines to the bottom, e.g. those aligned with the ΕΥΡΩ mark on the 10 EUR note, are actually made of the word "EURO" in very small print.
Matted surface: the euro sign and the denomination are printed on a vertical band which is only visible when lighted at an angle of 45°.
[edit] Counterfeiting
There has been a rapid growth in the counterfeiting of Euro banknotes and coins since the launch of the currency in 2002. In 2003, 551,287 fake euro notes and 26,191 bogus euro coins were removed from EU circulation. In 2004, French police seized fake 10 euro and 20 euro notes worth a total of around €1.8 million from two laboratories and estimated that 145,000 notes had already entered circulation.
[edit] Serial Number
Unlike the euro coins, the euro notes do not have a national side indicating where they're from. This information is instead encoded within the note's serial number.
The first letter of the serial number uniquely identifies the country that issues the note. The remaining numbers (when added up and the digits of the resulting sum then added together again until a single digit remains) give a checksum also particular to that country. The W, K and J codes have been reserved for the EU member states currently not participating in the Euro.
[edit] Country letters
Country codes are alphabetised according to the countries' names in the official language of each country, but reversed:
| Code | Country | Checksum(1) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| in English | in official language | ||
| Z | Belgium | België/Belgique/Belgien | 9 |
| Y | Greece | Ελλάδα [Ellada] | 1 |
| X | Germany | Deutschland | 2 |
| (W) | (Denmark) | Danmark | (3) |
| V | Spain | España | 4 |
| U | France | France | 5 |
| T | Ireland | Éire/Ireland | 6 |
| S | Italy | Italia | 7 |
| (R) | (Luxembourg) | Luxembourg/Luxemburg/Lëtzebuerg | (8) |
| (Q) | Not Used | ||
| P | Netherlands | Nederland | 1 |
| (O) | Not Used | ||
| N | Austria | Österreich | 3 |
| M | Portugal | Portugal | 4 |
| L | Finland | Suomi/Finland | 5 |
| (K) | (Sweden) | Sverige | (6) |
| (J) | (United Kingdom) | United Kingdom | (7) |
(1) checksum of the 11 digits without the letter
- The positions of Denmark and Greece have been swapped in the list of letters starting the serial numbers, presumably because Y (upsilon) is a letter of the Greek alphabet, while W is not.
- Ireland's first official language is Irish; however, in the above chart it is clear the order was based on the English Ireland rather than the Irish which is Éire. Irish is an official EU language as of 1 January 2007. It is uncertain if this will affect the placement of its code in euro banknotes printed after that time.
- In the case of Finland, which has two official languages that are also official EU languages (Finnish and Swedish), the order was based on the Finnish Suomi instead of the Swedish Finland, presumably because Finnish is the majority language in the country.
- Belgium has three official languages, all of which are official EU languages. Luxembourg also has three official languages, with two being official EU languages. However, in these cases, the countries' positions in the list would be the same no matter which language was used.
The notes of Luxembourg currently use the prefix belonging to the country where they were printed.
Slovenia will not print euro notes for the time being, and will use previously issued banknotes from other eurozone member states. For this reason, no country code has been reserved for Slovenia yet.
Also, as the number of members of the EU grows steadily larger, it seems likely that when the next series are issued (2008 expected) that the prefixes will change to 2-digit prefixes as at that stage, there should be 27 members (but only 26 letters in the Latin alphabet, or fewer if letters that could be confused with numbers are excluded).
It has also been suggested that, should the prefixes change to two characters, the code should be the state's ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 code (e.g., EE for Estonia, DE for Germany).
[edit] Printing works
Somewhat hidden on the front of the note is a second, smaller sequence where the first letter identifies the actual printer of the note. The printer code need not coincide with the country code, i.e. notes issued by a particular country may have been printed in another country (e.g. some Finnish notes have in fact been produced by a UK printer). The A, C and S codes have been reserved for printers currently not printing Euro banknotes.
| Code | Printer | Location | Country |
|---|---|---|---|
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(Bank of England Printing Works) | (Loughton) | (United Kingdom) |
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Not Used | --- | --- |
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(Tumba Bruk) | (Tumba) | (Sweden) |
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Setec Oy | Vantaa | Finland |
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F. C. Oberthur | Chantepie | France |
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Österreichische Banknoten und Sicherheitsdruck | Vienna | Austria |
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Johan Enschedé & Zn. | Haarlem | Netherlands |
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De La Rue | Gateshead | United Kingdom |
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Not Used | --- | --- |
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Banca d'Italia | Rome | Italy |
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Central Bank of Ireland | Dublin | Ireland |
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Banque de France | Chamalières | France |
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Fábrica Nacional de Moneda y Timbre | Madrid | Spain |
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Bank of Greece | Athens | Greece |
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Not Used | --- | --- |
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Giesecke & Devrient | Munich & Leipzig | Germany |
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Not Used | --- | --- |
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Bundesdruckerei | Berlin | Germany |
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(Danmarks Nationalbank) | (Copenhagen) | (Denmark) |
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National Bank of Belgium | Brussels | Belgium |
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Valora - Banco de Portugal | Carregado | Portugal |
As from 2002, the individual national central banks (NCBs) are responsible for the production of one or two specific banknote denominations and will thus select the printing works. This decentralised pooling scheme means that the NCBs have to exchange the denominations produced in different locations prior to issue.
[edit] Design changes and smaller Euro denominations
Italy, Greece and Austria have asked several times to introduce lower denominations of Euro notes.[3] The ECB has stated that "printing a €1 note is more expensive (and less durable) than minting a €1 coin". On 18 November 2004 the ECB decided definitively that there was insufficient demand across the Eurozone for very low denomination banknotes. On 25 October 2005, however, more than half of the MEPs tabled a motion calling onto the European Commission and the European Central Bank to recognise the definite need for the introduction of €1 and €2 banknotes. [4] However it must be noted that the European Central Bank is not directly answerable to the Parliament or the Commission, and will therefore possibly ignore the motion. It is also possible the ECB may "recognise" the need, but take no action to fulfil this "need".
The design of the banknotes did not change after the expansion of the European Union to the east in 2004 (for example, the map does not show Cyprus). Now that Bulgaria has joined the EU, the banknotes will have to be updated with a Cyrillic rendering of the name "Euro" (Евро). Newer designs are expected to be issued in 2008. Like the pre-Euro currencies, the new series will start from the lower denominations[citation needed].
There are requests from some countries to include more abbreviations, such as EI and EV because the currency is commonly called eiro in Latvian and evro in Slovene. However, it is ECB policy that the name euro be used in all countries using Latin script. See the article Linguistic issues concerning the euro for more information on this discussion.
Banknotes have to bear the ECB president's signature. New notes printed after November 2003 show Jean Claude Trichet's signature, replacing that of the first president, Wim Duisenberg.
[edit] Design Trivia
Due to the ubiquity of countless historic bridges, arches, and gateways throughout the continent, all the structures represented on the banknotes are entirely fictional, merely designed to evoke the landmarks within the EU.[5]
[edit] See also
[edit] External links
- Security features on euro banknotes
- Information on signatures, printer plate numbers and more
- Euro banknote design exhibition — entries for the 1996 banknote design competition (24MB PDF)
- "The euro banknotes that never were! (L’euro : les maquettes refusées! )" 44 euro banknote designs of the 1996 competition
