Banco de Antioquia
Ten Centavos Payment Order · N.° 62308, Series A 3.ª · Medellín, January 19, 1900
Historical and Issue Context
A private bank turned government agent:The Banco de Antioquia was established in Medellín in 1872, and towards the end of the 19th century it was, together with the Banco de Medellín, one of the two banking entities with the largest clientele in the department of Antioquia.1This bill, however, does not circulate as the bank's own bill, but rather “of the contract with the Government” —a payment instrument issued by its successor on behalf of the State.
Emergency paper during the civil war:Since 1887, private banks were prohibited from issuing their own banknotes, a monopoly that the National Bank and then the State maintained. However, when the Thousand Days War broke out (1899–1902), the shortage of currency for minor payments led the national government to authorize private lithographs to print low-denomination banknotes, to entrust drafts to regional governments, and to once again resort to private banks as issuing agents, despite the current prohibition.2
A fractional peso for small change:With a value of just ten cents, this currency fulfilled the practical function of providing small change in an economy where the majority of circulating paper money was issued in denominations of one or more pesos, increasingly devalued by the growing inflation of the war.
The cancellation stamp:The red oval stamped on the back corresponds to a re-stamp or cancellation mark, a common practice to control circulation and prevent falsification of this type of regional emergency paper.
Key Details Visible on the Banknote
- Header:“ N.° 62308 — Series A 3.ª” in black and red ink, on a background guillochéd in green ink.
- Left engraved oval:large figure “10” framed in an oval with a geometric background, instead of the portrait or figurative vignette common on banknotes of the time.
- Obligation text:“Of the contract with the Government. Successor. Banco de Antioquia. Medellín, January 19, 1900. The Teller of this Bank shall pay in three days the amount of Ten Cents which he shall debit from the account of the Government.”
- Signature:“The Owner Manager”, with signature in red ink.
- Imprint:“Typography Central — Medellín”, barely visible in the lower margin of the obverse.
- Reverse:decorative border of geometric rosettes that frames the legend “Centavos — 10 — Centavos” in black ink, with the figure “10” repeated on both sides, and a circular reseal stamp in red ink superimposed in the center.
Notes
1. National Museum of Colombia / Antioquian banking historiography on the Banco de Antioquia (1872) and the Banco de Medellín as the main banking entities in the department at the end of the nineteenth century.
2. National Museum of Colombia, “Pieces in Dialogue”: on the issue of emergency paper money during the Thousand Days’ War (1899–1902), including the use of private lithographers, regional governments, and private banks despite the issuance ban in force since 1887.