20 Soles

Peru's 1879 war finance notes — this series among them — were issued under severe fiscal pressure as the country entered the War of the Pacific against Chile and Bolivia. The government turned to paper money in part because silver coinage was being hoarded and exported at an accelerating rate. ABNC printed the series before hostilities fully erupted, but the notes circulated through some of the worst years of the conflict, including the Chilean occupation of Lima in 1881.

The P#7A designation distinguishes a signature variety within the broader 1879 issue. Occupation-era redemption was chaotic, and a substantial portion of circulating notes were never formally retired.