Catalog
20 Pesos
| Issuer | Banco de Comercio |
|---|---|
| Year | 1915 |
| Type | Standard circulation banknote |
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| Obverse description | The obverse is dominated by a large central guilloche medallion bearing the numeral '20' in bold intaglio, flanked by ornate lathe-work panels and two smaller '20' numerals at left and right. A vignette at the right depicts an equestrian statue of a military figure on a stone pedestal, rendered in fine engraving. The bank title 'EL BANCO DE COMERCIO' arches across the top, with the legend 'PAGARÁ AL PORTADOR EN MONEDA EFECTIVA' below, and the place and date 'TEGUCIGALPA, HONDURAS' and '16 DE FEBRERO DE 1915' at the lower margin; series and serial number positions are printed 'SERIE A' and 'Nº 00000', with 'SPECIMEN' overprints in red. |
|---|---|
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| Reverse description | The reverse is printed in black on white paper and centers on an oval vignette of the Honduran national coat of arms, set within an elaborate engine-turned guilloche border. The denomination numeral '20' appears in large intaglio figures to the left and right of the central vignette, with corner numerals '20' in each quadrant. The bank name 'BANCO DE COMERCIO' is inscribed above the central oval, and 'VEINTE PESOS' appears in a ribbon panel at the lower center; the printer's imprint 'AMERICAN BANK NOTE COMPANY' is at the bottom margin. |
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| Comments |
Banco de Comercio was one of several regional Mexican banks still attempting to function during the most chaotic phase of the Revolution. By 1915, the Constitutionalist government under Carranza was aggressively nationalizing and closing private banks, making notes of this period more artifacts of institutional collapse than of normal commercial banking. Whether this issue actually circulated in any meaningful volume before the bank was effectively shuttered is an open question.
ABNC's involvement was routine for Mexican private bank issues of the era — the plates were produced in New York regardless of what was happening across the border.