Catalog
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| Issuer | Thesouro Nacional |
|---|---|
| Year | 1835 |
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| Value | Log in to see details |
| Currency | Real (1799-1942) |
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| Obverse description | Intaglio-printed in black on white paper by Perkins, Bacon & Petch, London. The left vignette carries the Arms of the Brazilian Empire, flanked at right by a finely engraved oval portrait medallion, while the central field is occupied by a panoramic view of the Baía de Guanabara as it appeared in the early 19th century. A text panel to the lower centre cites the authorising decree of 1 June 1833, with the denomination numerals 500 and the legend QUINHENTOS repeated across the upper and lower borders. |
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| Obverse lettering | 500 QUINHENTOS * QUINHENTOS 500 IMPERIO DO BRASIL Nº ____ 500$000 NO THESOURO NACIONAL SE PAGARÁ ao portador desta a quantia de QUINHENTOS MIL RÉIS, valor recebido. 500 Decreto de 1º de Junho de 1833. 500 QUINHENTOS * QUINHENTOS 500 (Translation: 500 Five Hundred Empire of Brazil No. ____ 500$000 At the National Treasury you will pay bearer of this the amount of Five Hundred Thousand Réis, amount received. 500 Decree of June 1, 1833. 500 Five Hundred) |
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| Comments |
Brazil's Treasury turned to Perkins, Bacon & Petch for this issue at a moment when the young empire had no domestic capacity for secure intaglio printing. Jacob Perkins had by the 1830s already revolutionized banknote engraving through his siderography process — steel-plate transfer technology that allowed identical, forgery-resistant replication at scale — and Brazilian authorities were among many overseas clients who contracted his firm precisely for that security advantage.
The "1st print" designation matters: subsequent printings of this 500 Mil Réis denomination exist, and the differences between print runs are subtle enough that misattribution is common in general collections.