Catalog
Why register? Just to keep bots out of our catalog. Your email stays private - we will never share it or send you anything uninvited. We guarantee you that!
| Issuer | Thesouro Nacional |
|---|---|
| Year | 1844 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | Log in to see details |
| Currency | Log in to see details |
| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Size | 200 × 130 mm |
| Shape | Log in to see details |
| Printer | Log in to see details |
| Designer(s) | Log in to see details |
| Engraver(s) | Log in to see details |
| In circulation to | Log in to see details |
| Reference(s) | Log in to see details |
| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | 500 500 * QUINHENTOS * 500 * 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. 500 500 * QUINHENTOS * 500 * QUINHENTOS 500 MODELO (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) |
| Reverse description | Blank, without any printing. |
| Reverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Signature(s) | Log in to see details |
| Protection type | Log in to see details |
| Protection description | Log in to see details |
| Variants | Log in to see details |
| Comments |
Brazil's paper currency in the 1840s occupied deeply uncomfortable political ground. The Banco do Brasil had collapsed in 1829, leaving the Thesouro Nacional to fill the void through direct treasury emission — an arrangement that generated chronic inflation and public distrust throughout the Regency period. This 500 Mil Réis belongs to that uneasy interval before the second Banco do Brasil was established in 1851.
Perkins, Bacon & Petch were among the most technically sophisticated security printers of the mid-nineteenth century, known particularly for their siderographic steel engraving process, which made plate duplication and counterfeiting significantly harder than copper-based alternatives. The contract reflects how far Brazil was sending its currency commissions at the time — across the Atlantic, to London.