Confederate States of America Dollar - Designs

Designs

The South, being limited in skilled engravers and printers as well as secure printing facilities, often had to make do with unrelated designs in early banknote issues. Some such were abstract depictions of mythological gods and goddesses. Southern themes did prevail with designs of black slaves, naval ships, and historical figures, including George Washington. Images of slaves often had them depicted as smiling or happily carrying about their work. John Jones has recreated these images as large acrylic paintings in a contemporary series called "Confederate Currency: The Color of Money."

Since most of the engravers and bank plates were in the North, Southern printers had to lift by offset or lithographic process scenes that had been used on whatever notes they had access to. Many variations in plates, printing and papers also appear in most of the issues, due in large part to the limits on commerce resulting from the Union embargo of Confederate ports.

Some of the people featured on banknotes include Andrew Jackson, John C. Calhoun, Christopher Memminger, Robert M. T. Hunter, Alexander H. Stephens, Jefferson Davis, Judah P. Benjamin, Clement Clay, George W. Randolph, and Lucy Holcombe Pickens, the wife of the Governor of South Carolina. There was even a bill featuring George Washington.