Catalog
10 Balboas
| Issuer | Banco Central de Emisión de la República de Panamá |
|---|---|
| Year | 1941 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | 10 Balboas (10 PAB) |
| Currency | Log in to see details |
| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Size | Log in to see details |
| Shape | Log in to see details |
| Printer | Log in to see details |
| Designer(s) | Log in to see details |
| Engraver(s) | Log in to see details |
| In circulation to | Log in to see details |
| Reference(s) | Log in to see details |
| Obverse description | The central vignette presents a finely engraved view of Panamá Viejo (Old Panama), the ruins of the original colonial capital, rendered in intaglio and framed by elaborate guilloche underprints on both sides. Denomination panels and the issuing authority legend are arranged within the ornate border, with the obligation text running across the upper register. The overall composition is executed in a style typical of early twentieth-century American bank note engraving. |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | MONEDA FIDUCIARIA DE CURSO LEGAL CONSTE POR ESTE BILLETE QUE HAY DEPOSITADOS EN EL BANCO CENTRAL DE EMISION DE LA REPUBLICA DE PANAMA DIEZ BALBOAS PAGADEROS AL PORTADOR A SOLICITUD |
| Reverse description | Log in to see details |
| Reverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Signature(s) | Log in to see details |
| Protection type | Log in to see details |
| Protection description | Log in to see details |
| Variants | Log in to see details |
| Comments |
Panama's 1941 paper currency issue was produced under uniquely constrained circumstances. The Banco Central de Emisión had been chartered specifically to challenge the country's longstanding monetary arrangement with the United States, under which the Balboa existed as a legal unit but no Panamanian paper currency circulated — the dollar filled that role entirely. President Arnulfo Arias pushed the enabling legislation through in October 1941, and notes were printed and delivered almost immediately.
The government that authorized them was gone within days. Arias was overthrown on 9 October 1941 while travelling abroad, and the incoming administration moved quickly to suppress the entire issue. Most notes were withdrawn and destroyed before reaching circulation, making survivors from this series genuinely rare across all denominations.