Catalog
5 Pesos Circulating note, Blue seal, Yellow back
| Issuer | Philippine National Bank |
|---|---|
| Year | 1921 |
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| Currency | Peso (1857-1967) |
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| Obverse description | Intaglio-printed note in dark blue-black on white paper, with an oval vignette at left containing a portrait of President William McKinley facing three-quarters right, framed by an elaborate guilloche border with large numeral '5' corner pieces. The centre carries the bank title and denomination in bold letterpress, with an authorization text above referencing Acts 2612, 2747, and 2938 of the Philippine Legislature. A circular blue seal of the Philippine National Bank is applied at right, flanked by two manuscript signatures above their respective titles of Cashier and President. |
|---|---|
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| Reverse description | Uniformly printed in vivid orange-yellow, the reverse presents an intricate guilloche framework with scrollwork corner pieces and a broad decorative outer border. The words 'PHILIPPINE NATIONAL BANK CIRCULATING NOTE' appear in large bold serif lettering at centre, flanked by large numeral '5' panels. The denomination 'FIVE PESOS' is inscribed in horizontal banners across the upper field, while small oval cartouches reading 'FIVE' appear at lower left and right, with a legal receivability clause in small text along the lower centre. |
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| Comments |
The Philippine National Bank was established in 1916 partly to break the stranglehold of foreign commercial banks — primarily British and American — on agricultural credit in the islands. These circulating notes were authorized under the PNB's charter to function as legal tender, a privilege unusual for a state-owned commercial bank and one that made the institution a direct instrument of colonial economic policy under the American administration.
The BEP's involvement meant the plates never left Washington, creating a logistical dependency that would become awkward during the Japanese occupation two decades later. The yellow back is a deliberate anti-counterfeiting measure specific to this series, not a design affectation.