The gentlemen (no ladies) who fashioned the first U.S. currency did so with the idea of giving dollars a classic as well as economic flavor. And two Latin phrases are still evident on the dollar bill. “Annuit Coeptis” (above the pyramid) means “God has favored our undertakings.” “Novus Ordo Seclorum” (below the pyramid) translates as “New order of the ages.” And the Roman numbers MDCCLXXVI (also at the pyramid) stands for 1776, the year of America’s Declaration of Independence. (As well, the words “E Pluribus Unum” appears on U.S. coins, signifying “Out of the many, one.”)
TOM TIEDE