The Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco: Economic Research, Educational Resources, Community Development, Consumer and Banking Information

The Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco


Images of both war and peace are represented on the official seals and currency of the United States. The eagle on the Great Seal of the United States has the arrows of war in one of its talons and the olive branch of peace in the other.
War is a part of our country's history and has often been reflected in the design of our paper money. Symbols of war, from early battlefields to battleships, have been depicted on U.S. currency.
During times of war, the U.S. and our allies even printed currency in foreign denominations for use in occupied countries, such as the Japanese sen.
During World War II, an occupied country's existing currency was demonetized after an Allied invasion and replaced with Allied Military Currency. Allied Military French franc and German mark notes were printed, as were Allied Military Austrian schillings and Allied Military Italian lire currency.