Catalog
| Issuer | El Banco Español Filipino |
|---|---|
| Year | 1908 |
| Type | Standard circulation banknote |
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| Obverse description | A vignette at left depicts an allegorical female figure in traditional dress, holding a sheaf of grain, rendered in fine intaglio against an ornate guilloche border. The bank title is inscribed in bold letterpress at upper centre, with the denomination VEINTE PESOS in large block letters below, and a red circular seal appears at right. The note bears the date Manila, P.I., 1° Enero, 1908, along with two manuscript signature lines for El Tenedor de Libros and El Director, and a serial number in red. |
|---|---|
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| Variants | P#3a - signature at left: Julian Serrano P#3b - signature at left: J. Serrano |
| Comments |
El Banco Español Filipino — despite the name — was still operating under American colonial administration by 1908, having survived the transition from Spanish to American rule after 1898. The Bureau of Engraving and Printing in Washington took over production of the bank's notes during this period, replacing earlier European printing arrangements. The bank itself would be reorganized and renamed the Bank of the Philippine Islands in 1912, making this series among the last to carry the old colonial-era name.
The P#3 designation places this among a small series. Given the bank's imminent restructuring, surviving circulated examples are not common — institutional changeovers rarely encouraged careful preservation of the predecessor's paper.