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| Issuer | Banco Agrícola Mercantil |
|---|---|
| Year | 1888 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | Log in to see details |
| Currency | Peso (1878-1912) |
| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Reverse description | Printed entirely in red, with an intricate guilloche lattice covering the entire surface. The large numeral "1" appears twice in mirror symmetry at left and right center, each set within elaborate lathe-work rosette panels. "BANCO" appears at top and "MERCANTIL" at bottom, flanking the central "AGRICOLA" inscription. A circular treasury stamp reading "Tesorería General - Nicaragua" is applied at center. |
| Reverse lettering | BANCO AGRICOLA MERCANTIL UNO UNO 1 1 AMERICAN BANK NOTE COMPANY, NEW YORK (Translation: Mercantile Agricultural Bank One One 1 1 American Bank Note Company, New York) |
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| Comments |
Banco Agrícola Mercantil was one of several Guatemalan private banks operating under the 1874 banking law that allowed commercial institutions to issue their own circulating currency — a privilege that persisted until the Guatemalan government began consolidating note-issuing authority in the early twentieth century. The American Bank Note Company handled production for much of Latin America's private banking sector during this period, and the quality differential between ABNC-printed notes and locally produced alternatives was stark enough that ABNC credentials actively influenced public trust in a note's acceptance.
The S-prefix reference indicates this is catalogued among speciman or private bank issues rather than government emissions — characteristic of Guatemala's fragmented monetary arrangements of the late nineteenth century.