Catalog
10 Pesos El Imperio Mexicano
| Issuer | El Imperio Mexicano (Mexican Empire) |
|---|---|
| Year | 1823 |
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| Currency | Peso (1863-1992) |
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| Obverse description | The denomination DIEZ PESOS appears at upper left, with a handwritten serial number at upper right; between them sits the Imperial Coat of Arms as a central vignette. The body of the note carries the promise of the Mexican Empire to pay ten pesos in accordance with the Decree of 20 December 1822, followed by three manuscript signatures at the bottom. Vertical side panels in both left and right margins carry a letterpress guilloche-style geometric border with the repeated inscription DIEZ PESOS. |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | DIEZ PESOS EL IMPERIO MEXICANO promete pagar esta cantidad de DIEZ PESOS con arreglo al Decreto de 20 de Diciembre de 1822, sobre este asunto. México 1 de Enero de 1823 (Translation: TEN PESOS THE MEXICAN EMPIRE promise to pay this amount of TEN PESOS, according to the Decree of December 20, 1822, on this matter. Mexico January 1, 1823) |
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| Comments |
Mexico's First Empire lasted less than two years, and the financial infrastructure Iturbide attempted to build lasted even less. These notes were issued by the Junta Provisional Gubernativa's successor government shortly after independence but before any functioning central bank existed — the "empire" was printing paper on institutional faith alone, backed by no meaningful specie reserve. Iturbide was deposed in March 1823, the same year this series circulated, and the empire was formally dissolved by May.
Survival rate is extremely low. The new republic had every incentive to destroy instruments associated with the imperial regime, and most were redeemed or simply discarded during the political transition.