5 Pesos Constitution Centennial

Issued to mark the centenary of Uruguay's 1830 constitution, this note was produced by the Banque de France printing works in Paris — an unusual choice given that institution's primary mandate, but the French security printing operation had long taken on foreign commissions. Clément Serveau designed the obverse, with engraving by Jules Piel; Sébastien Laurent and Eugène Gaspérini handled the reverse — a full Franco-Parisian production team with no Uruguayan hand in the artwork.

The 1830 constitution itself was a notably liberal document for its time, establishing a secular state structure that set Uruguay apart from most of its neighbors for generations.