Giori Press Test Note

Historical and Issue Context

The Giori Press:In the mid-twentieth century, the Swiss engineer Gualtiero Giori developed an intaglio printing press capable of printing several colors in a single pass, revolutionizing the production of paper money. The Bureau of Engraving and Printing (BEP) of the United States adopted this technology to modernize the printing of the dollar.

A subcontracted test note:This example was produced on behalf of the American Can Company at a test facility in Geneva, New York, for the specific purpose of calibrating and fine-tuning a new Giori press prior to delivery and installation at the BEP. It does not represent real money nor was it ever legal tender.

A collage of existing plates:Instead of engraving a new design, technicians reused existing plates of one, two, five, and fifty-dollar bills to test the color and printing register of the new press, resulting in a historically unique document that combines elements of several denominations into a single piece with no face value.

Key Details Visible in the Note

• Three engraved portraits:Abraham Lincoln, George Washington, and Ulysses S. Grant, taken directly from the plates used to print the one-, five-, and fifty-dollar bills.
• Cancellation lines:three thick horizontal bands cross each portrait, a deliberate device to prevent the test note from being mistaken for legal tender or used fraudulently.
• Top legend:“THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA” in a typographic arc taken from the back of the five-dollar bill, with solid blocks deliberately superimposed on part of the letters —, another proof of press registration.
• Side panels:vertical ornamental medallions with the word “FIVE” repeated, taken from the fine decorative engraving of the five-dollar bill.
• Nearly blank reverse:Only a faint ghosting or ink transfer from the front is visible, typical of a technical test where the back was not part of the main calibration target.

Additional Context

Outside of any standard numismatic cataloging system (it does not appear in Friedberg or Pick, as it is not legal tender), this type of proof note belongs rather to the realm of industrial exonumia: a technical document from the BEP modernization era that is extremely rare today, prized by collectors specializing in printing proofs and the history of the technology behind the US dollar.

Sources

• Bureau of Engraving and Printing —bep.gov(opens in a new tab)
• Heritage Auctions —ha.com(opens in a new tab)
• Numista —numista.com(opens in a new tab)