Catalog
100 Bolívares
| Issuer | Banco de Venezuela |
|---|---|
| Year | 1919 |
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| Printer | American Bank Note Company |
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| Obverse description | Dark olive-green note with a central vignette of a llanero on horseback herding cattle across an open plain, flanked by large numeral '100' panels set within intricate guilloche work on both sides. The issuer's name 'BANCO DE VENEZUELA / SOCIEDAD ANONIMA' appears at the top in bold letterpress, with a panel at centre right reading 'PAGADERO EN LAS OFICINAS DEL BANCO'. The denomination 'CIEN BOLÍVARES' is inscribed in a scroll band below the central vignette, with place of issue 'CARACAS' and serial numbers printed at upper left and right. |
|---|---|
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| Reverse description | Printed in golden-yellow tones, the reverse is dominated by a central oval vignette containing the Venezuelan national coat of arms, flanked on each side by large numeral '100' medallions set within elaborate geometric guilloche panels. The inscription 'BANCO DE' appears at the top centre and 'VENEZUELA' at the bottom centre in bold lettering, with the overall design composed of fine lathe-work borders typical of American Bank Note Company engraving. |
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| Comments |
The Banco de Venezuela was a private commercial bank, not a central bank — Venezuela had no central bank until 1940. Notes issued under its authority during this period circulated alongside those of other chartered private institutions, the whole system functioning under government concession rather than monopoly. The 100 Bolívares denomination placed this squarely in the high-value commercial register, used for wholesale trade and inter-bank settlement rather than ordinary retail transactions.
American Bank Note Company produced the bulk of Latin American private bank currency in this period from their Manhattan facilities. The S-prefix in the Pick reference designates it as a State or private commercial bank issue, distinct from the later national series that followed the 1940 central bank legislation.