Catalog
50 Pesos
| Issuer | Banco Hipotecario |
|---|---|
| Year | 1881 |
| Type | Standard circulation banknote |
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| Obverse description | Left vignette of a seated allegorical female figure reclining with agricultural implements and a cornucopia; guilloche underprint in pink. Central text panel carries the bank name and payment obligation in letterpress. Right vignette shows a wicker basket with produce. Denomination numeral 50 appears in two ornate panels at upper right and lower left. |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | EL BANCO HIPOTECARIO PAGARA AL PORTADOR A LA VISTA CINCUENTA PESOS EN MONEDA CORRIENTE BOGOTA, 1º DE OCTUBRE DE 1881 EL GERENTE EL PRESIDENTE DEL CONSEJO CINCUENTA |
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| Comments |
The Banco Hipotecario was a mortgage bank, not a central or commercial bank — its notes were backed by property liens rather than metallic reserves, an arrangement common in Latin America during the 1870s and 1880s when land-rich but cash-poor economies needed circulating paper. Whether this specific issue saw meaningful general circulation or functioned more as a specialized financial instrument depends heavily on the regional context of the issuing branch, which the Pick reference alone doesn't resolve.
ABNC printed extensively for Argentine and wider South American clients during this period, and their 1880s South American work is among the more technically accomplished of the era — steel engraving of consistent quality, tight registration.