Banque de la République d'Haïti
Three experimental Tyvek® banknotes: 1, 2, and 50 Gourdes (1980)
Une Gourde · 1980
Dr. François Duvalier · Coat of Arms of Haiti
Key Details Visible on the Banknote
- Obverse:portrait of Dr. François Duvalier (“Papa Doc”, 1907–1971), president for life of Haiti, in a central oval.
- Reverse:Coat of Arms of Haiti, with the royal palm tree and traditional war drums, in circular borders.
- Anti-break substrate:printed on porous Tyvek plastic film, without traditional watermarks but with micro-printed geometric patterns.
- Numbering:Dual serial numbers in steel blue, impact etched.
- Color:dark-brown ink on a blue and light-green background; sepia reverse.
Deux Gourdes · 1980
Dr. François Duvalier · Coat of Arms of Haiti
Key Details Visible on the Banknote
- Obverse:portrait of Dr. François Duvalier in a central oval, flanked by Baroque medallions bearing the numeral “2”.
- Reverse:Coat of Arms of Haiti in the center, with a table of the legal articles of issue.
- Intaglio engraving:high tactile relief characteristic of ABNC machinery on the portrait and borders.
- Numbering:double symmetrical serial number in carmine red, printed with independent typographic date stamp.
- Color:dark-blue intaglio ink with pink and ocher security backgrounds; monochrome blue reverse.
Cinquante Gourdes · 1980
President Lysius Félicité Salomon · Coat of Arms of Haiti
Historical Context: the World Pioneer of Plastic Money
Before Australia, there was Tyvek®:Printed by the American Bank Note Company between 1980 and 1982, these Haiti notes are among the world's first attempts at plastic currency, alongside Costa Rica and the Isle of Man, almost a decade before Australia introduced modern polymer in 1988.2,3
An experiment defeated by the climate:Tyvek® proved extremely tear-resistant, but the tropical heat and humidity of the Caribbean caused the ink to smear and peel off with use, making the bills difficult to recognize; The project was withdrawn from circulation after a relatively short period.4,5
Key Details Visible on the Banknote
- Obverse:portrait of President Lysius Félicité Salomon Jeune (1815–1888), promoter of the postal system and founder of the National Bank of Haiti in the 19th century; two large medallions bearing the number “50” flank the portrait.
- Reverse:Coat of Arms of Haiti, with the royal palm tree crowned by the Phrygian cap, surrounded by military trophies, cannons and flags, under the motto “L'Union Fait la Force”.
- Multilayer intaglio engraving:mechanically raised perimeter text and guilloché frames, with ABNC's classic tactile texture.
- Color:black and dark-gray ink with a pink and ocher security background; reverse in deep gray tones.
Notes
1. Numismatic News, “The Road to Polymer Bank Notes”: In 1955, Jim White, a researcher at DuPont, discovered the material later called Tyvek, a yarn of high-density polyethylene fibers.
2. Numismatic News, id.: “Bank notes made of Tyvek were subsequently printed in the early 1980s by the American Bank Note Company for three countries: Haiti, Costa Rica, and the Isle of Man… In 1980, Haiti released its Tyvek notes.”
3. Wikipedia, “Polymer banknote”: The modern polymer was developed by the Reserve Bank of Australia and first issued in 1988.
4. Coin Update, “The Tyvek banknotes of Haiti”: “the hot and humid climate of Haiti (and Costa Rica) caused the ink to smear. After some time in circulation, many of the notes were difficult to recognize.”
5. Mintage World, “Haiti Banknotes Made of Tyvek”: “The experiment failed because of the hot and humid climate of Haiti causing the ink to smear. Over a period of time, they became difficult to recognise and hence were withdrawn.”
