10 centavos 1913
About This Note
A scarce Mexican revolutionary-era banknote issued by the Tesorería General del Estado of Chihuahua on December 10, 1913, during General Francisco Villa's provisional government. The note displays authentic period features including ornate green text on the obverse and a red heraldic eagle seal on the reverse, with visible natural aging consistent with genuine historical circulation. Despite moderate wear including creases and edge deterioration, the note retains clear printing and demonstrates the characteristic emergency currency issues of Mexico's tumultuous 1910-1920 period.
Uncommon to Scarce. While not extremely rare, Chihuahua state treasury notes from the Villa period (1913-1914) have limited surviving examples due to their emergency nature, limited original circulation, and the passage of over 110 years. The P-S550 designation indicates this is a catalogued but non-mainstream issue. Print runs for such state provisional currency were typically small, and many examples were destroyed or lost. UNC examples are particularly scarce, as most surviving notes show circulation wear; the visible condition issues on this specimen suggest it is more readily found in circulated grades. Collector interest in Mexican revolutionary currency has increased, supporting moderate valuations for authentic period examples.
This note represents one of Chihuahua's provisional state treasury issues during the Mexican Revolution, when regional governments issued their own currency due to national monetary disruption. The presence of General Francisco Villa's name as Provisional Governor reflects his military control of the state during this period, and the Tesorería General del Estado designation indicates formal governmental authority behind the issuance. The December 1913 date situates this note within Villa's most prominent period of power in northern Mexico, making it a tangible artifact of revolutionary financial necessity.
The obverse features a formal treasury note layout with the denomination prominently displayed and centered text in green on a cream background. Decorative corner ornaments containing the numeral '10' frame the design with classical flourishes typical of early 20th-century Mexican banknotes. The reverse presents a heraldic composition dominated by a circular seal containing the Mexican eagle (águila) with spread wings, characteristic of Mexican state coat of arms imagery, rendered in red/pink printing. The eagle is positioned within concentric circles and surrounded by ornate scrollwork and geometric border patterns. Both sides employ symmetrical design principles with elaborate corner cartouches and repeated decorative motifs, reflecting the engraved banknote tradition of the era.
FRONT SIDE: 'Tesorería General del Estado' (General Treasury of the State) / 'El presente es válido, al portador, por diez centavos' (This is valid, to the bearer, for ten centavos) / 'Chihuahua, 10 de diciembre de 1913' (Chihuahua, December 10, 1913) / 'El Gobernador Provisional del Estado, Gral. Francisco Villa' (The Provisional Governor of the State, General Francisco Villa) / 'Tesorero Gral. del Estado' (General Treasurer of the State) / 'Interventor' (Comptroller/Auditor) / 'Imprenta del Gobierno.—Chihuahua' (Government Printing Office.—Chihuahua) / Serial number: 60265 / Reference codes: 2E-31, IM-001. REVERSE SIDE: 'Tesorería General del Estado' (General Treasury of the State) / 'Chihuahua' / Denomination: '10' (Ten centavos).
Intaglio engraving and letterpress printing. The note exhibits characteristics of period banknote production including fine line engraving evident in the decorative borders, corner ornaments, and heraldic seal on the reverse. The green and red printing were applied separately, suggesting multiple-pass production. The printer attribution 'Imprenta del Gobierno.—Chihuahua' (Government Printing Office) indicates production at the state's official printing facility rather than a specialized security printer, which was common for revolutionary-era Mexican state issues.
Serial number 60265 with reference codes 2E-31 and IM-001 indicate this specific printing lot. The signature block designates positions for Gobernador Provisional (Provisional Governor), Tesorero General (General Treasurer), and Interventor (Comptroller), with this example appearing to have manuscript signatures typical of official treasury issue documentation. Known varieties for Chihuahua 1913 issues include different signature combinations and serial number prefixes; the '60265' notation suggests this may be from a mid-range serial batch. No overprints or known major die varieties are evident on this specimen.
