3 Pesos Tesoro Nacional

Paraguay's Tesoro Nacional notes of 1860 were issued under the government of Carlos Antonio López, who had built a deliberately autarkic state — no foreign debt, tight state control over commerce, and a deep aversion to external financial entanglement. Printing domestically at Charles Riviere's Asunción lithography shop, rather than contracting a European security printer, was consistent with that policy, though it came at a cost in technical quality.

Lithographic paper currency printed in mid-19th century South America is inherently fragile, and Riviere's output shows it. The watermark security feature was modest by contemporary standards. The entire monetary system this note belonged to was obliterated by the War of the Triple Alliance, which by 1870 had killed the majority of Paraguay's population.