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500 Mil Réis Banco Nacional do Brazil, 1st. Print
| Issuer | Banco Nacional do Brazil |
|---|---|
| Year | 1890 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | 500 000 Réis (500 000) |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Obverse description | Printed in black on polychrome underprint, executed in intaglio (calcography) and lithography. To the left, an oval vignette contains a female bust; at the center, a tall-masted vessel on the open sea is framed by a standing allegorical female figure holding a flag. Print and series numbers appear in black, with the order number in red. |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Reverse description | Printed in sepia by intaglio (calcography). The central motif is an oval medallion bearing an effigy of Mercury, god of commerce, set against a guilloche background executed in the Marajoara decorative style, drawn from the indigenous ceramic art of Marajó Island. |
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| Comments |
The Banco Nacional do Brazil was one of several short-lived private banks of issue that emerged in the chaotic months following the Proclamação da República in November 1889. The new republican government, under Finance Minister Rui Barbosa, dramatically loosened banking regulations in 1890, triggering a speculative frenzy known as the Encilhamento — a period of reckless credit expansion, wildcat banking, and paper money proliferation that ended in a severe financial crash by 1891.
Waterlow & Sons produced this first print before the bank had established any meaningful reserve base. The institution did not survive the decade.