Description and research notes
This 1976 2 Dollars Federal Reserve Note from the Richmond District (Friedberg 1935-E, EB Block) represents one of the most desirable Bicentennial-era issues certified with the exclusive “DUECE DUKE” pedigree. The PMG label designation (Cert. 1015355-162) marks this note as part of a small group recognized for its exceptional balance, color strength, and eye appeal — qualities that elevate it above the broader population of Gem Uncirculated examples.
The 1976 release marked the long-awaited reintroduction of the 2 Dollar denomination, absent from circulation since 1966. Timed to coincide with America’s Bicentennial celebration, the notes were issued on April 13, 1976 — Thomas Jefferson’s birthday — under the signatures of Treasurer Francine Neff and Secretary of the Treasury William E. Simon. Many were postmarked on release day and set aside as commemoratives, forever linking the issue with the nation’s 200th anniversary.
On the obverse, Jefferson’s portrait remains faithful to the classical layout of the earlier red-seal Legal Tender series, but with modernized typography and the green Treasury seal that formally reclassified the denomination as a Federal Reserve Note. The reverse introduced one of the most ambitious intaglio engravings in American paper money — a detailed adaptation of John Trumbull’s 1818 painting “The Signing of the Declaration of Independence,” engraved by multiple BEP artists and celebrated as a technical triumph of line and tone.
Certified PMG 66 EPQ Gem Uncirculated, this note displays bright, fully original paper with crisp embossing and perfect centering. The EPQ designation confirms natural paper texture and untouched originality. With a limited number known in this top tier, the “DUECE DUKE” pedigree adds documented provenance and underscores its place among the finest Bicentennial notes ever graded.
A quintessential representative of the modern commemorative era, this piece captures the artistic, historical, and cultural dimensions of the U.S. Bicentennial in physical form — a benchmark example of how precision engraving, patriotic symbolism, and collector pedigree converge in one of the most iconic notes of the 20th century.