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20 Pesos
| Issuer | Banco Nacional de la República de Colombia |
|---|---|
| Year | 1900 |
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| Shape | Rectangular |
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| Obverse description | The obverse is printed in black on pale paper with an intricate guilloche underprint. At center, the Colombian coat of arms appears within an oval vignette flanked by the large numeral "20" at left and a standing figure of a laborer or soldier at right. The header reads "EL BANCO NACIONAL DE LA REPÚBLICA DE COLOMBIA" with the promise text "PAGARÁ AL PORTADOR A LA VISTA VEINTE PESOS CORRIENTE"; multiple manuscript signatures and printed authorization lines of the Junta de Emisión and Ministro del Tesoro appear in the lower portion, and a red circular control stamp is affixed at center. |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | EL BANCO NACIONAL DE LA REPÚBLICA DE COLOMBIA PAGARÁ AL PORTADOR A LA VISTA VEINTE PESOS VEINTE Serie 20 PESOS MONEDA CORRIENTE MINISTRO DEL TESORO MIEMBROS DE LA JUNTA DE EMISIÓN |
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| Comments |
The Banco Nacional de la República de Colombia had a troubled existence almost from the start — it held a state monopoly on note issue but was chronically undercapitalized, and by the late 1890s the government was printing paper money to finance the Thousand Days War, one of the most destructive civil conflicts in Colombian history. This note falls squarely in that inflationary spiral. Emissions multiplied rapidly between 1900 and 1902, and the peso depreciated to near worthlessness before the bank was formally liquidated in 1904.
Printing domestically at Litografía Nacional rather than through a European security printer was itself a symptom of wartime fiscal desperation. Quality control suffered accordingly.