Rivers, birds and cultural spaces to feature on new euro notes

The Eurosystem has narrowed down its design options for the new series of euro notes to two themes.

In a statement published on January 31, the European Central Bank said the first theme was European culture”. This, it said, would feature “various cultural activities and spaces, and iconic European personalities who have contributed to building Europe’s cultural heritage”.

The second theme was “resilience in diversity”, which would be symbolised by rivers and birds. The bank said that showcasing natural ecosystems in different stages would emphasise the “importance of nature and environmental protection”. This theme would also include imagery of European institutions to serve as reminders of the “fundamental values of the European project”.

“We are developing new banknotes because we are committed to cash now and in the future,” ECB executive board member Piero Cipollone said, adding that “banknotes are a symbol of our European unity”.

The bank’s president, Christine Lagarde, said the new notes would “symbolise our shared European identity and the diversity that makes us strong”.

The ECB will launch a design contest featuring both themes later this year and the bank’s governing council will pick final designs in 2026. However, the bank said the new notes would not go into circulation until “several years” from now.

However, the bank did specify exactly what it would like featured in each design.

The front of the €5 note is to showcase either Greek-American opera singer Maria Callas or a mountain spring with a “wallcreeper next to a mountain landscape”. The inverse is to feature either “street performers entertaining passersby” or the European Parliament.

The front of the €10 euro note should either have German composer Ludwig van Beethoven or a kingfisher in a waterfall or run pool. On the other side, the note should display a song festival with a choir of children or the European Commission headquarters.

The front of the €20 note is to portray either Polish-French physicist and chemist Marie Curie or a bee-eater colony in a sand wall on the side of a large, confined river valley. On the flipside, the ECB would like either a “school or university with a female teacher with young students” or the headquarters of the European Central Bank.

The €50 note could showcase either Spanish author Miguel de Cervantes or a “white stork flying over a meandering river in an unconfined river valley”. The opposite side could have a “library with some adults reading paper and digital books” as well as a “little boy and girl in front of a bookcase trying to get a book” – or, alternatively, the headquarters of the Court of Justice of the European Union.

The €100 note should feature either Italian artist Leonardo da Vinci or an avocet sweeping over the surface of a mud flat. On the inverse, it should have adults and children admiring some examples of street or contemporary art – or, alternatively, the headquarters of the European Council and the Council of the European Union.

The €200 note is expected to display Austro-Bohemian Nobel peace prize laureate Bertha von Suttner or a northern gannet flying over ocean waves. On the backside, it should have a “tree-covered square allowing people to come together with adults and children” engaged in various activities – or, alternatively, the headquarters of the European Court of Auditors.

The most recent series of euro notes featured the “ages and style” theme. These involved windows and doorways, thus symbolising the European “spirit of openness and co-operation”. The inverse sides show bridges, alluding to “communication between the people of Europe and between Europe and the rest of the world”.

The ECB said today that it had surveyed the views of “more than 365,000 Europeans” in the summer of 2023 as well as focus groups between December 2021 and March 2022 when coming up with the shortlists.