{"id":45132,"date":"2022-08-15T17:37:21","date_gmt":"2022-08-15T17:37:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/hardbacon.ca\/non-classifiee\/canadian-2-dollar-bill\/"},"modified":"2023-11-24T07:35:35","modified_gmt":"2023-11-24T12:35:35","slug":"canadian-2-dollar-bill","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/hardbacon.ca\/en\/banking\/canadian-2-dollar-bill\/","title":{"rendered":"5 Things You Might Not Know About the Canadian 2 Dollar Bill"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Throughout history, the lands now known as Canada have had a myriad of different forms and types of currencies, in a variety of denominations. The majority of these denominations fell to the wayside over time. The most recent of which was the Canadian 2 dollar bill<\/strong>. In this article, we\u2019re going to dig into the Bank of Canada\u2019s history and explore five things you may not know about the Canadian 2 dollar bill.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

The 2 dollar bill was issued by the Bank of Canada<\/a> from 1935-1996. During its time in circulation, the bill featured three different members of the British Royal family on the obverse (the “heads” side of currency), and a changing thematic engraving on the note\u2019s reverse (the “tails” side of currency). Queen Elizabeth II graced the obverse of every Canadian 2 dollar bill printed from 1954\u2019s \u201cLandscape Series\u201d to the note\u2019s withdrawal in 1996.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

#1: The Canadian 2 Dollar Bill Speaks Another Language<\/strong> <\/h2>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

A portrait of Queen Mary, wife of King George V, was the first member of the Royal family to grace the Canadian 2 dollar bill in the \u201cFirst Series\u201d in 1935. The changes to the bill from the \u201cFirst Series\u201d to the \u201cBilingual Series\u201d were significant and had lasting impacts on the stylistic direction of Canadian bank notes in the future. <\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

The portrait of Queen Mary was replaced by King George VI and moved to the centre of the notes in the \u201cBilingual Series.\u201d This portrait orientation was standard across the \u201cBilingual Series.\u201d The colour scheme introduced with the \u201cBilingual Series\u201d became the standard (with a few tweaks) for the Bank of Canada\u2019s bank notes to the present. In 1937, the Canadian 2 dollar bill was introduced with its terracotta shade, known as \u201csanguine.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

Finally, the engraving on the reverse of the bill changed from the \u201cFirst Series\u201d to the \u201cBilingual Series.\u201d The \u201cFirst Series\u201d featured an allegorical engraving representing transportation on the note\u2019s reverse. The \u201cBilingual Series\u201d opted to take inspiration from the \u201cFirst Series\u201d for the 1937 Canadian 2 dollar bill, using the allegorical engraving of harvest from the \u201cFirst Series\u201d $10 note.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

#2: The North\u2019s North Gets Some Shine.<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

As a Canadian Environmental historian, I marvel at the Canadian North. I often think that Northern Canada doesn\u2019t receive as much focus and exploration from the rest of the country as it should. In fact, I wrote two theses\u2019 on a Northern Canadian river valley. For real. <\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

Much like Myself in academic research, The Bank of Canada looked North for inspiration for the engraving on the back of the \u201cScenes of Canada\u201d<\/a> series of the bill. They also looked to another Canadian Institution: the National Film Board.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

In particular, they searched through the collection of still photos and films from Doug Wilkinson\u2019s Land of the Long Day<\/em><\/a>.<\/em> The Bank of Canada chose a colour image of hunter Joseph Idlout as the subject for engraving and enshrinement on the back of the bill.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

Idlout was the leader of a small community of families in a summer hunting camp on Baffin Island, known as Aulatsiivik. Wilkinson\u2019s goal was to capture the Aulatsiivik\u2019s combined use of traditional and modern technology in their daily life and for their survival. You learn more about Idlout, Land of the Long Day, <\/em>and the Canadian 2 dollar bill engraving here<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

#3:  Funny Money in the West<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

If you are from a generation when physical cash was significantly more prevalent in society, you\u2019ll likely have heard Canada\u2019s currency (and most of the world) being mocked by Americans for its now signature multi-coloured design scheme. The Canadian 2 dollar bill was subject to regional mocking, as different geographical regions preferred using different denominations of cash.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

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\u201cIn the West, $2 bills are funny money.\u201d<\/p>\nAlan Edmonds in MacLean\u2019s, October 1st 1967<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

In 1967, Canadian\u2019s relationship with the 2 dollar bill was a complicated one. The bill was used at a 1:1 ratio as the Canadian 1 dollar bill<\/a> in British Columbia. People in Vancouver used more 2 dollar bills than any other part of the country. East of Manitoba, banks reported using one 2 dollar bill for every two 1 dollar bills. <\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

In Regina, the ratio was  400-1 in favour of the Canadian 1 dollar bill. The Interprovincial Steel and Pipe Corporation (ISPC) used this regional disdain for the 2 dollar bill to prove how valuable they were to the local economy. The ISPC paid its employees in 2 dollar bills so that the sudden increase in the notes\u2019 regional circulation could be connected to their importance as an employer. <\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

Why the Prairie paranoia toward the Canadian 2 dollar bill?  <\/h3>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

Bankers pointed in four directions, all of which included bad luck or misfortune of some sort. The Canadian 2 dollar bill was commonly associated with: gambling on horse racing, a reported connection between the word \u201cdeuce\u201d and the Devil, imported superstitions from America\u2019s struggles with almost identical currency designs of the American 2 and 5 dollar bills, and a connection between the Duke of Windsor\u2019s image on the Canadian 2 dollar bill and his real-life accident history. <\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

#4: Red-Light Connections<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

The terracotta-coloured Canadian 2 dollar bill might not be a vivid red like the Canadian 50 dollar bill, but it has a long history with the colour red. As in red-light districts and prostitutes in the Western provinces. Yet another reason for puritanically-inclined Westerners to dislike the 2 dollar bill.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

Restaurant staff from Winnipeg in the 1970s and 80s recall the regional connection between Winnipeg\u2019s long-established and tolerated red-light district and the Canadian 2 dollar bill. They noted that people didn\u2019t want to be associated with the bill because back then, \u201cI guess you got a screw for a two.\u201d<\/a> <\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

Others noted that in Edson, Alberta no one used the Canadian 2 dollar bill because of their reported connection to \u201chow much a lady of the evening cost.\u201d The same person noted that it was even considered an insult to give a 2 dollar note as the change in a transaction. <\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

#5: The End of an Era & the Rise of the \u201cToonie\u201d<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

If you have ever seen a Canadian 2 dollar bill, you have likely seen a bill from the \u201cBirds of Canada\u201d Bank note Series. Each bird was selected for enshrinement on the 1986 series due to their pan-Canadian habitat and to compliment the long-established Canadian bank note colour scheme. For the Canadian 2 dollar bill, the robin served as the inspiration for the terracotta-coloured bill’s reverse side. <\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

Like the majority of Canadian 2 dollar bills, the \u201cBirds of Canada\u201d series featured a portrait of the Head of the Monarchy; in this case, a portrait of Queen Elizabeth II was featured on the obverse of the bill. Colour copiers prompted enhanced security features across the \u201cBirds of Canada\u201d series, including four specific places of raised ink and random green dots on both sides of the notes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

In the 1995 federal budget speech, the Canadian government announced that the bill was being pulled from circulation, and replaced by the more durable and economically beneficial two-dollar coin, the toonie. The terracotta-coloured bill was officially withdrawn on February 16, 1996. <\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

If you have a Robin-adorned Canadian 2 dollar bill, you may want to check the serial number and hope the note is in prime condition. Canadian 2 dollar bills with the AUH-prefix were printed in 1986 and could be worth between $3000 – $15,000. A generation of Canadians exchanged freshly lost teeth for this 2 dollar bill that could net you up to $20,000 if you have a mint-condition note. In the mean time, check out the best chequing account<\/a> to put you hard earned dollar bills in!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Throughout history, the lands now known as Canada have had a myriad of different forms and types of currencies, in a variety of denominations. The majority of these denominations fell to the wayside over time. The most recent of which was the Canadian 2 dollar bill. In this article, we\u2019re going to dig into the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":103,"featured_media":15125,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[195,320],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-45132","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-banking","category-banknotes"],"acf":{"has_no_offer_box":"0"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/hardbacon.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/45132","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/hardbacon.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/hardbacon.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hardbacon.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/103"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hardbacon.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=45132"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/hardbacon.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/45132\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hardbacon.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/15125"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/hardbacon.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=45132"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hardbacon.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=45132"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hardbacon.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=45132"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}