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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;WingedLiberty, post: 993681, member: 26030&quot;]I think it&#039;s cool that the vignette on the 1896 $1 Silver Certificate was engraved using the view from the Arlington House (Lee&#039;s Mansion) in Virginia as the background.&nbsp; </p><p><br /></p><p>[ATTACH]95784.vB[/ATTACH]</p><p><br /></p><p>I visited the Mansion last Spring and took this photo from the front porch.&nbsp;&nbsp; </p><p>The trees are bigger and there are more building in DC now than back in&nbsp; the 1890&#039;s, but it was really cool seeing that background scene in real&nbsp; life.&nbsp; Imagine having this view from your front porch!</p><p><br /></p><p>[ATTACH]95785.vB[/ATTACH]</p><p><br /></p><p>The Arlington House was the home of Robert E. Lee and his family for 30&nbsp; years and is uniquely associated with the Washington and Custis&nbsp; families. George Washington Parke Custis built the house to be his home&nbsp; and a memorial to George Washington, his step-grandfather. </p><p><br /></p><p><img src="http://mindstar.com/mansion3.png" class="bbCodeImage wysiwygImage" alt="" unselectable="on" /></p><p><br /></p><p>The design for the 1896 $1 Silver Certificate note, entitled <i>History Instructing Youth</i>, shows a female History with a young student standing beside her, gesturing to an open book of history before her. An olive branch rests against the book, holding it open to show the Constitution of the United States upon the page.</p><p><br /></p><p>Some in the late 1890&#039;s complained that the word &quot;Tranquility&quot; was misspelled on that engraved page (the common spelling at the time put 2 L&#039;s in Tranquillity).&nbsp; However in the original constitution Tranquility had 1 L.&nbsp; Since the early 1900&#039;s that word has gone back to the single L spelling. </p><p><br /></p><p>The outside border of the note shows 23 wreaths, each bearing the name of a noteworthy American - not surprisingly starting with Washington, Jefferson and Franklin, but also including such names as poet Henry Longfellow, inventor Robert Fulton, and author Nathaniel Hawthorne, among many others.&nbsp;&nbsp; Some of the&nbsp; names listed are so obscure now that many today would struggle to know&nbsp; their claim to fame (e.g. Bancroft).</p><p><br /></p><p>[ATTACH]95787.vB[/ATTACH]</p><p><br /></p><p>It is certainly difficult to beat the sheer beauty, artistry, and rich detail of this note.&nbsp; </p><p>Many fail to notice the US flag draped over the lap of the female figure representing <i>History</i>. </p><p><br /></p><p>[ATTACH]95788.vB[/ATTACH]</p><p><br /></p><p>I also think it&#039;s interesting that bankers hated these notes, as they became smudgy &amp; suspicious looking with little use and tellers struggled to quickly identify the denomination when counting stacks.&nbsp; Collectors liked them though and many were pulled out of circulation and saved due to their unique look.&nbsp; They sold for a 30 cent premium from currency/coin dealers soon after issue.&nbsp; The 1896 Educational issue was fairly quickly replaced (3 years later) by the famous 1899 Black Eagle note.</p><p><br /></p><p>By the way, I own this particular note.&nbsp; It&#039;s still one of my favorite currency designs ever.[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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