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10 Centavos = 1 Real
| Issuer | Banco Nacional de Colombia |
|---|---|
| Year | 1885 |
| Type | Standard circulation banknote |
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| Obverse description | Dark green intaglio-printed note with the issuer's title 'BANCO NACIONAL DE COLOMBIA' across the upper portion, flanked by a circular vignette at left bearing the Colombian coat of arms with condor. The denomination '10' appears in an ornate counters at upper right, with the text 'DIEZ CENTAVOS' in bold letterpress across the centre and the place and date 'BOGOTA, 5 de Agosto de 1885' below. Two manuscript signature lines for Director Gerente and Directors are visible across the lower half, with a serial number in red ink; the printer's imprint 'COMPANIA AMERICANA DE BILLETES DE BANCO, NUEVA YORK' runs along the bottom margin. |
|---|---|
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| Reverse lettering | UN REAL UN REAL AMERICAN BANK NOTE COMPANY, NEW YORK |
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| Comments |
Colombia's Banco Nacional was a state-owned institution established in 1880 specifically to give the government direct control over paper money issuance — a move that broke sharply from the private banking model that had dominated the previous decade. This note, denominated in both centavos and reales, reflects the awkward transitional arithmetic of Colombian currency in the mid-1880s, when the older real-based reckoning still held enough popular traction that dual denominations were considered necessary for daily commerce.
The ABNC contract for this series is well-documented. The 1885 date is significant: the War of 1885 forced the government to lean heavily on Banco Nacional emissions to finance federal military operations, accelerating the inflationary spiral that would eventually destroy the bank's credibility entirely.