500 Mil Réis Thesouro Nacional, 12th. Print

Brazil's National Treasury had used the American Bank Note Company for high-denomination paper throughout the late imperial and early republican periods, and this 1918 issue of the 500 Mil Réis continues that long-running contract relationship. The "12th Print" designation matters: ABNC produced successive printings of the same basic plate across multiple years, with the print number being the primary means of distinguishing otherwise near-identical notes in the series.

Brazil entered a period of significant monetary stress following World War One — coffee export revenues collapsed as European demand dried up, and the mil réis lost roughly half its exchange value against sterling between 1914 and 1920. High-denomination notes like this one were being issued into an economy where they bought considerably less than when the series was first designed.