Catalog
500 Mil Reis
| Issuer | Banco da República dos Estados Unidos do Brazil |
|---|---|
| Year | 1890 |
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| Composition | Cotton paper |
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| Obverse description | Intaglio-printed in green and black, the obverse centres on an oval vignette of a seated allegorical female figure surrounded by elaborate guilloche work. A vignette of a tall-masted sailing vessel on open water occupies the left panel, while a standing allegorical female figure appears to the right; the denomination '500' is set into each upper corner. The issuer's name arches across the top register, with 'QUINHENTOS MIL REIS' in bold letterpress along the lower margin, and a red 'SPECIMEN' overprint appears twice at the foot with all serial number positions replaced by zeros. |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | BANCO DA REPUBLICA DOS ESTADOS UNIDOS DO BRAZIL RIO DE JANEIRO QUINHENTOS MIL REIS NOS TERMOS DO DECRETO NUMERO 1154 DE 7 DE DEZEMBRO DE 1890 SERIE 1ª ESTAMPA 1ª SPECIMEN |
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| Comments |
The Banco da República dos Estados Unidos do Brazil was itself a creature of the Encilhamento — the speculative frenzy that followed the abolition of slavery and the proclamation of the Republic in 1889, when the new government dramatically loosened credit and printing authorization in an attempt to monetize a newly free labor economy. The result was runaway inflation and a proliferation of bank-chartered notes that the federal government would spend the better part of the 1890s trying to claw back.
American Bank Note Company produced the series in New York at a moment when Brazilian institutional design relied heavily on imported engraving expertise. The "Estados Unidos do Brazil" styling in the bank's name reflects the republican constitutional language adopted directly from the U.S. model — a usage that persisted officially until 1968.