2 Gourdes

Haiti's Trésor Public issued this note just over two decades after independence, during a period when the young republic was still absorbing the consequences of the 1825 indemnity agreement with France — a debt of 150 million francs (later renegotiated downward) that would burden Haitian finances for over a century. Domestic paper emissions in this environment were viewed with considerable skepticism by the Haitian public, who had good reason to distrust promises printed on paper.

Pick 33 is among the earliest surviving Haitian paper issues and is extremely rare in any condition. Documentation on the actual printer remains incomplete.