Catalog
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| Issuer | Banco de Occidente |
|---|---|
| Year | 1890-1919 |
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| Reference(s) | P#176 |
| Obverse description | Printed in green and black, the obverse bears the arched bank title BANCO DE OCCIDENTE / EN QUEZALTENANGO across the top with the denomination numeral 5 at upper centre; the central intaglio vignette presents a classical allegorical female figure reclining alongside a millwheel and agricultural implements, a steam locomotive visible in the background. The Guatemalan coat of arms occupies an oval cartouche at the left, while a quetzal bird perches on a branch at the right, with serial numbers flanking the vignette on both sides. Three manuscript signatures run along the lower margin above the American Bank Note Co., New York imprint. |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | BANCO DE OCCIDENTE EN QUEZALTENANGO Quezaltenango, de Febrero de 1910 REPUBLICA DE GUATEMALA CINCO Cinco Pesos EN MONEDA EFECTIVA Y A LA PRESENTACION Pagará al portador American Bank Note Co. New York |
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| Comments |
Banco de Occidente was a regional Colombian issuing bank operating out of Cali, one of several private banks authorized to circulate notes under Colombia's free banking period — a monetary arrangement that lasted, chaotically, from the 1870s until the government finally suppressed private emission in 1923. The American Bank Note Company's involvement was common for Latin American issuers of this era seeking engraved intaglio work that domestic printers couldn't match, and the ABNC plates were sometimes retained and reused across multiple date ranges, which explains the wide 1890–1919 window.
Notes from Occidente are considerably scarcer than those from the larger Bogotá-based banks.