The official site of Italy's central bank

Banknotes

General features

The euro banknote series which is legal tender throughout the euro area comprises seven different denominations: €5, €10, €20, €50, €100, €200, and €500.

The euro banknotes were designed by Robert Kalina of the Austrian central bank (Oesterreichische Nationalbank). He won the Europe-wide design competition held in 1996.

Each euro banknote depicts a European architectural style. In ascending order of denomination the styles represented are: Classical, Romanesque, Gothic, Renaissance, Baroque and rococo, the Age of iron and glass, and Modern 20th century architecture.

In addition, the windows and gateways symbolize the European spirit of openness and cooperation. The 12 stars of the European Union (EU) represent the dynamism and harmony of contemporary Europe. The bridges on the back of the notes symbolize communication between the people of Europe and between Europe and the rest of the world.
The notes also carry the name of the currency - euro - in both the Latin (EURO) and the Greek (EYPΩ) alphabets, the EU flag, and the initials of the European Central Bank in five linguistic variants - BCE, ECB, EZB, EKT and EKP - covering the 11 EU official languages at the time of the introduction of the euro. The symbol © indicates copyright protection.

Security features

Euro banknotes incorporate various security features to help users recognize a genuine banknote at a glance. It only takes a few seconds to check a banknote by feeling it, looking at it and tilting it.

Special printing processes make it possible to feel the raised print on the banknotes.

On the front and back of genuine banknotes it is possible to see the watermark, the security thread and the see-through number. By tilting the banknote, on the front it is possible to see the shifting image on the hologram, on the back, it is possible to see the glossy stripe on the lower denomination banknotes (€5, €10, and €20) or the colour-changing number on the remaining notes.
For more information about checks, click on the link below to the ECB website.

Signature

Under Article 1 of ECB Decision ECB/2003/4 on the denominations, specifications, reproduction, replacement and withdrawal of euro banknotes, the notes bear the signature of the President of the ECB.

At present, euro banknotes can be found in circulation with the signature of Mr. Duisenberg and, if issued after 2004, with the signature of Mr. Trichet. With the appointment of Mr. Draghi as ECB President on 1 November 2001, soon banknotes with his signature will also circulate.

Each banknote bears the signature of either Willem F. Duisenberg, Jean-Claude Trichet or Mario Draghi - the first, second and third President of the European Central Bank respectively. These banknotes are all equally valid.

Reproductions and replacements

The regulations for reproducing and replacing euro banknotes set out the criteria for producing reproduction so that they cannot be mistaken for genuine banknotes. There are also guidelines for replacing banknotes that have suffered minor intentional damage or those presented for replacement by a bona fide customer.
These regulations were published in the Official Journal of the European Union on 25 March 2003.