Famous 1954 Canada Dollar Bill Graded By Professional Coin Grading Service

(Santa Ana, California) – PCGS recently encapsulated an outstanding example of a Canada 1954 Queen Elizabeth II Dollar revealing the appearance of the Devil’s likeness in the monarch’s hair. Widely known as the Queen Elizabeth II Devil’s Hair Dollar, the specimen submitted to PCGS Banknote is a Replacement Note graded Gem Uncirculated 66PPQ.

“This is one of the quirkiest, dare I say most infamous, of all numismatic pieces from Canada,” said PCGS President Stephanie Sabin. “It’s the kind of novelty that has a lot of crossover collector appeal from various market segments. It’s a relatively common note in the absolute sense, but when it comes to the conditional rarity of this Replacement Note, a Gem Uncirculated 66PPQ like this is almost unheard of. We were very excited when this rarity came into the PCGS Banknote Grading Room.”

The note was submitted by Stack’s Bowers Galleries, where Consignment Director Adem Karisik from the auction firm’s Vancouver office offered his insights on this curiosity. “The 1954 Bank of Canada series was the third issue of Canadian banknotes and the first to feature Queen Elizabeth II on all denominations, marking a new era in Canadian currency,” he said. “Her portrait, based on a photograph by renowned British photographer Dorothy Wilding, was engraved with precision by George Gunderson of the British American Bank Note Company. The queen’s face was intentionally placed on the right side of the notes to minimize the risk of damage from folding, a design choice meant to preserve the dignity of the monarch’s image.”

Karisik went on to say that the Canadian series was issued in denominations of $1, $2, $5, $10, $20, $50, $100, and $1,000, each printed with vibrant colors and intricate designs to enhance their visual appeal and security features. “However, what was intended as a celebratory issue of the young Queen’s reign took an unexpected turn when sharp-eyed Canadians noticed what appeared to be a ‘devil's face’ hidden in the queen's hair near her ear,” explained Karisik.

“This was not an error or the result of deliberate sabotage, despite persistent rumors suggesting hidden political messages or symbolism. The ‘Devil’s Face’ was simply an unintended consequence of Gunderson’s engraving, where intricate shading and texture in the portrait created an accidental illusion — a perfect example of pareidolia,” he said, referring to a psychological phenomenon that can cause some people to see patterns, like faces, in random places.

“The public’s reaction was swift, with complaints pouring in about the unsettling resemblance,” added Karisik. “In response, the Bank of Canada took immediate action, ordering a redesign of the Queen’s hair to remove any hint of the ‘face.’ By mid-1956, the modified notes with the revised design were in circulation, while the original ‘Devil’s Face’ notes were phased out. This short-lived production made the original notes much scarcer than their modified counterparts, and today, they remain one of the most popular and coveted items in Canadian paper money collecting.”

For more information about submitting banknotes to PCGS, please visit https://www.pcgs.com/banknote.

About PCGS

Professional Coin Grading Service (PCGS) is a third-party coin and banknote grading company that was launched in 1986. Over 35 years, PCGS has examined and certified more than 54.3 million U.S. and world coins, medals, and tokens with a combined value of over $53.3 billion. For more information about PCGS products and services, including how to submit your coins for authentication and grading, please visit www.PCGS.com or call PCGS Customer Service at (800) 447-8848.