Description and research notes
A complete photographic proof pair for the 1939 500 Pesos issue produced by the American Bank Note Company for the Departamento de Emisión del Banco de la República Oriental del Uruguay. Issued as part of Uruguay’s unified 1939 monetary series, the 500 Pesos denomination occupied a senior position within the structure of the issue, second only to the 1,000 Pesos.
The obverse features a classical female head in profile, framed within an ornate architectural cartouche and accompanied by the full denomination and national arms. Executed with dense guilloche engraving and carefully balanced tonal modulation, the design reflects American Bank Note Company’s mature interwar style, combining symbolic restraint with technical precision.
The reverse presents a complex figurative composition centered on rural labor and agrarian production, with multiple figures arranged in a cohesive narrative scene. Rather than overt allegorical abstraction, the engraving emphasizes national productivity, land, and social continuity, rendered with exceptional depth and compositional control.
Printed on photographic paper and mounted on original cardstock, this proof pair was not part of the currency production process but served as an archival record of the finalized design. Certified by Professional Coin Grading Service Currency as Choice New 63, it survives as a complete face-and-back photographic ensemble documenting the visual authority of Uruguay’s pre-war banknote program.