Description and research notes
A photographic proof pair for the 1935 1 Peso issue produced for the Departamento de Emisión del Banco de la República Oriental del Uruguay. Printed on photographic paper and mounted on cardstock, this pair records the approved face and back designs for the lowest denomination of Uruguay’s 1935 series.
The obverse presents a dual-portrait composition combining a helmeted allegorical female figure and a formal profile portrait of José Gervasio Artigas, arranged within a dense ornamental framework of guilloche and engraved line work. The central denomination and national arms anchor the composition with clarity and symmetry.
The reverse depicts a large-scale historical scene of mounted and foot figures in dynamic motion, framed by architectural and ornamental elements with denomination tablets at the corners. Fine cross-hatching and strong contrast preserve legibility across the broad pictorial field.
These photographic proofs were created as archival records of the finalized engravings rather than as production trials or circulation material. Preserved as a complete face-and-back ensemble and previously mounted on cardstock, the pair documents the design language employed for Uruguay’s 1935 one peso denomination.
Certified by Professional Coin Grading Service Currency as Very Choice New 64 for both face and back, this proof pair survives in exceptional condition and represents a rare institutional artifact of American Bank Note Company production for Uruguay in the mid-1930s.