u/TWN113

As we all know, the US dollar has two emblems: one from the Federal Reserve and one from the U.S. Treasury. However, the original dollar emblems were not what we see today. For several years before 1996, the Federal Reserve emblem had a letter in the center indicating which specific Federal Reserve Bank issued the banknote. Starting with the 1996 issue of the large-format dollar bills, this was replaced by a nationally unified Federal Reserve emblem, and the central letter became an eagle. So, why did this change occur?

This is an Imperial Russian ruble issued in 1910. Its elaborate European-style ornamental border leaves a strong impression.

https://preview.redd.it/ebmopj5khujh1.jpg?width=600&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=ca39c426931637c37a2cf784fdf83c68d1caa76e

The image below shows the 1961 Soviet ruble. Although the political regime had changed, the banknote clearly continued the design tradition established during the Imperial Russian era.

https://preview.redd.it/skouminlhujh1.jpg?width=600&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=98d1e3eb867274d48fcf3e7479df250139aaf5c4

The next image is the 1997 Russian ruble, issued after the newly established Russian Federation had stabilized. By this point, the design had already begun to depart from tradition, but a number of classic design elements were still retained.

https://preview.redd.it/suwre94nhujh1.jpg?width=600&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=f75aa1639931969761689fcae6582bc2a6c8a989

The image below shows the 2017 Russian ruble. It can be said that its design has almost nothing in common with the traditional Russian ruble.

https://preview.redd.it/o2h7fsgphujh1.jpg?width=600&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=1fddbd381346601c64214b78d8f871d9598f4ed6

Ironically, the design of this series bears a striking resemblance to the neighboring Norwegian krone.

https://preview.redd.it/q5gjpz2shujh1.jpg?width=600&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=778ff130a802662a3b2095691989e210b4b6bf17

Now let's take a look at the U.S. dollar.

This is a U.S. dollar issued in 1914, almost contemporary with the 1910 Imperial Russian ruble shown earlier. Its most distinctive feature is the symmetrical ornamental border surrounding all four sides of the note.

https://preview.redd.it/4cclaq2vhujh1.jpg?width=600&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=0bcbcda63c0482d6c128dbfcc8780bf568570313

The image below shows a U.S. dollar issued in 1950, after World War II. As can be seen, its design is almost identical to that of the 1914 series, with the only major changes being the portrait and the main image on the reverse.

https://preview.redd.it/cmtsk0qwhujh1.jpg?width=600&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=f01be460f450d912939e28c98d4ef6f84cff2534

The next image is the 1996 "large-portrait" U.S. dollar. Aside from the enlarged portrait, its overall design remained virtually unchanged.

https://preview.redd.it/f9oaxdtyhujh1.jpg?width=600&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=d6932a3df05589b276cb75b55b605700f2215545

The image below shows the 2009 "colorized" U.S. dollar. Although this series introduced more substantial design changes than previous issues, it still clearly preserves the traditional American banknote style.

https://preview.redd.it/dmie3am0iujh1.jpg?width=600&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=aa8ce843d6f68a15d1c47a2470e6cf5a8e343478

Some argue that U.S. dollar banknotes appear stylistically consistent simply because the portraits have hardly changed.

If that's the case, let's look at the examples of the British pound and the French franc. In both cases, the two banknotes shown were issued more than fifty years apart and underwent countless design revisions, yet they still unmistakably belong to the same overall design tradition.

https://preview.redd.it/zekvceh2iujh1.jpg?width=600&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=e59a9030693f5cc60008a5fad4b2b7729791c1bc

https://preview.redd.it/hffdvgh2iujh1.jpg?width=600&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=a908319e950312e9e26add0b5af856f4970afaef

Searching for images of Indian rupee banknotes revealed two signatures printed on one. Initially, I thought they were the signatures of two different people, but after researching, I learned they are the signatures of the same person, one in English and one in Hindi.

https://preview.redd.it/7cwwhx16piih1.jpg?width=2300&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=f9fd22a98ee14a673b466af26861cc6a6fb15543

This is extremely rare worldwide. After the Indian rupee was redesigned in 2016, the signatures were changed from horizontal to vertical, but upon closer inspection, you can still see the same person's signature in two different languages.

https://preview.redd.it/mb5xbau7piih1.jpg?width=2500&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=7cab6dceb41a7f42908eef93a3e8f9e8ed1214c9

However, it seems the governors of the Reserve Bank of India are not very proficient in Hindi. Except for the most recent governor, the Hindi signatures of previous governors look like those of a primary school student.

https://preview.redd.it/2qu5gbnapiih1.jpg?width=2500&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=12bd79d3b1314ff038e05e79427091a68ea6a657

https://preview.redd.it/ohchuhwcpiih1.jpg?width=2500&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=ee738ef9a04a44dd38b453d936e1580189bbb61a

https://preview.redd.it/9ebt0pyoe4ih1.jpg?width=800&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=c2d0ebb7842deb68dd051806339371ff4f4cfeec

Although the current versions of banknotes have higher anti-counterfeiting features, the previous versions of banknotes from these three countries had a more distinctive national style, judging solely from their design.

Emperors typically possess three key characteristics: supreme power, unlimited term of office, and hereditary succession.

Supreme power: Putin and Xi Jinping wield unparalleled power domestically; no one can challenge their authority. Typical examples include Prigozin and Zhang Youxia.

Unlimited term of office: While Russia and China nominally have term limits for their heads of state, Putin and Xi manipulate the law to ensure their unlimited terms, with no one able to restrain them. It's important to distinguish this from some parliamentary systems, such as India, where Modi served three terms as prime minister, but his term was limited if his BJP lost elections.

Hereditary succession: Although there are no clear indications that Putin and Xi's children will be their successors, successful hereditary successions in nominal republics include the Kim Il-sung-Kim Jong-il-Kim Jong-un family, Chiang Kai-shek-Chiang Ching-kuo, Lee Kuan Yew-Lee Hsien Loong, and Hun Sen-Hun Manai. It is entirely possible that Katerina and Xi Mingze will inherit their fathers' positions.

Just as South Korea returned the remains to China and Vietnam returned the remains to the US.

如果中國放棄侵略台灣，台中關係能不能發展成印度和斯里蘭卡那樣的友好關係？