El Banco de Rio Hacha
Five Pesos · Face and back proofs · Series C · February 1883
Historical and Issue Context
A private bank in Riohacha: El Banco de Rio Hacha operated in the Guajira territory of northern Colombia. Gómez describes a single 1883 issue, engraved by American Bank Note Co., New York.2 It should not be confused with the later Banco Dugand (1919–1922 issues).
Conflicting founding dates: a local-history article, citing González Zubiría, says the bank was created on 1 April 1882 with authorized capital of 50,000 pesos and a license to operate with a little over 15,000, and in the same text places the founding in 1885 with 15,000 pesos.5 Those secondary statements conflict; they are not flattened here. The institution’s life is described as ephemeral.
The 1883 family: the Standard Catalog lists the 5 pesos as Pick S819p (black on brown underprint; arms at left, Simón Bolívar at center, woman with a wheel at right; series C; brown back; ABNC; proof).1 The 1 peso is Pick S818 (Bolívar at left, Nariño at right, PPH 1108);2,3 the 10 pesos appears as Pick S819A.4 This record documents only the 5-peso proof pair.
An archive pair, not a circulating note: PMG catalogs the obverse as FRONT PROOF (Pick S819p1, 1883) at 64 EPQ Choice Uncirculated and the reverse as BACK PROOF (Pick S819p2, ND 1883) at 62 Uncirculated, with zero serials and series C. The date printed on this face proof is February 1883, distinct from the catalog date 1.1.1883.1 A different S819p specimen, certified 65 EPQ, appeared as Eldorado Collection lot 10429; it is not this piece.6
Key Details Visible on the Banknote
- Main text: “EL BANCO DE RIO HACHA” and the promise to pay the bearer five pesos in current money, with the printed date February 1883.
- Left vignette: coat of arms with a condor, and the legend “Serie C”.
- Center vignette: circular portrait of a man in military uniform (Simón Bolívar, per the catalog).1 Below it, the red serial “00000”.
- Right vignette: a seated woman beside a wheel (industry or commerce).
- Proof identifiers: two cancellation holes at the lower center of the face; zero serials; separate PMG holders for each face.
- Reverse: monochrome brown-sepia printing with symmetrical guilloche, a blank central oval, “EL CAJERO” above that oval, and numerals “5” at both sides. Imprint “AMERICAN BANK NOTE COMPANY, NEW YORK”.
- Color: obverse in black on cream paper; reverse in brown.1
Notes
1. RealBanknotes / Standard Catalog of World Paper Money, Pick S819p (opens in a new tab): 1.1.1883; black on brown underprint; arms at left, Simón Bolívar at center, woman with a wheel at right; series C; brown back; printer ABNC; proof.
2. José Arcelio Gómez, Boletín Digital Numismático no. 133 (May 2014) (opens in a new tab): Banco de Rio Hacha in La Guajira; a single 1883 issue; ABNC; the 1 peso (PPH 1108) with Nariño at right and Bolívar at left —a different denomination from this 5 pesos.
3. RealBanknotes, Pick S818p (opens in a new tab): 1 peso, 1.1.1883, series B, ABNC (proof). Not the specimen on this record.
4. RealBanknotes, Pick S819Ap (opens in a new tab): 10 pesos, 1.1.1883, series D, ABNC (proof). Not the specimen on this record.
5. Alejandro Rutto Martínez, “Historia de Riohacha,” Maicao al día (2011) (opens in a new tab), citing González Zubiría (2005): founding on 1 April 1882 (50,000 pesos authorized) and, in the same article, 1885 with 15,000 pesos. Conflicting secondary sources.
6. PMG, “January Auction to Feature PMG-Graded Notes From the Eldorado Collection” (19 December 2017) (opens in a new tab): lot 10429, Banco de Rio Hacha, Pick S819p, 1883, 5 pesos, proof, PMG 65 EPQ. A different specimen from this 64 EPQ / 62 pair.