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1 Peso Ferro Carril de Costa Rica
| Issuer | Ferro Carril de Costa Rica |
|---|---|
| Year | 1872 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | 1 Peso |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | UNO 1 FERRO CARRIL DE COSTA RICA San José Abril 15 de 1872 El Contratista pagará en la Oficina General en San José UN PESO TESORERO CONTRATISTA AMERICA CENTRAL REPUBLICA DE COSTA RICA American Bank Note Co. New York. (Translation: One. Costa Rica Railroad. San José, April 15, 1872. The Contractor will pay in the General Office in San José, one peso. Treasurer. Contractor. Central America. Republic of Costa Rica.) |
| Reverse description | Printed entirely in green, the reverse is dominated by an elaborate guilloche framework with a large central medallion bearing the issuer's name in curved lettering. Ornate numeral "1" counters in script appear at left and right within dense lathe-work panels. The printer's imprint is inscribed along the top and bottom borders. |
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| Comments |
The Ferro Carril de Costa Rica was the short-lived railway concession tasked with building Costa Rica's first rail line — a project that consumed foreign capital, stalled repeatedly, and never reached completion under its original charter. These peso notes were issued as a private scrip currency to facilitate payroll and local transactions along the construction corridor, a common workaround in mid-nineteenth century Central America where coined money was chronically scarce in remote working camps.
American Bank Note Company's involvement placed this firmly in the premium tier of Latin American private scrip — ABNC engraving was expensive, and commissioning it signaled an intent to project institutional credibility as much as to print functional currency.