1000 Colones Series A

The American Bank Note Company held the contract for Costa Rican high-denomination issues through much of this period, and the 1000 Colones represented serious money — well above the daily wage of most Costa Ricans in the 1950s. Notes of this value rarely passed through ordinary hands and consequently survive in higher grades than lower denominations from the same series.

The twenty-two year span of Series A is unusually long for a note of this face value, suggesting the Banco Central saw little urgency to redesign until inflationary pressure made the denomination more routine in the 1970s.