"American money," in the words of Talking Heads frontman David Byrne, "is the ugliest money in the world." Every note is the same color and size, making for a particularly monotonous currency. Here are some more imaginative notes from around the world.
Australia was the first to make its legal tender out of plastic polymers, which last four times as long as conventional notes and provide much greater security against counterfeiting. Yet they are still recyclable when retired from circulation. A transparent window and a raised printing process called intaglio allow blind people to feel the difference among the denominations.