It has been a while since I have added to the ‘Mexican States’ which has stood at four entries for a while, this Journal Entry now adds Chiapas to the list and also a bank to the ‘Impossible Set’.

1            Chihuahua

2            Tamaulipas

3            Veracruz

4            Guerrero

5            Chiapas

Impossible Set can be found at:-

https://notes.www.collectors-society.com/registry/notes/ViewPersonalCollection.aspx?UserCollectionID=1822&Tab=list

Chiapas is the southern-most state in Mexico, bordering Guatemala and the Pacific and consists of a mixture of mountains and rainforest, is a region rich in history with many Mayan archaeological sites. The State capital, and only major city, is Tuxtla Gutierrez where the Banco de Chiapas was founded in 1901. Unusually this was an American owned bank established to support the building of a railway, however one of the partners commitment was somewhat dubious and it only operated for a few months before closing. In addition, the locals tended to use a local Guatemalan currency and banking services offered by the wealthy families of the region and had no trust in a new bank. During 1902 the bank was put in the hands of a local business man and its fortunes improved greatly before merging with Banco Oriental de Mexico in 1909 following the banking reforms of 1908. During this short-time a limited number of denominations were printed by the ABNC with proof and specimen notes known for the 5, 10 and 20 pesos. The total value of issued notes, across all denominations, was only $500,000 with the Banco Oriental de Mexico recalling these following the merger and recording $440,000 as incinerated.

5 pesos               S113, M65          print 50,000

10 pesos             S114, M66          print 25,000

20 pesos             S115, M67          print 12,500

Due to the rarity of issued notes the example in my collection representing this State, is a specimen note of 20 pesos (S115s, M67s, only four PMG graded examples). The vignette on the left of the front of the note depicts a local water carrier and two children whereas the back shows an image of farm workers leading a team of oxen transporting the crop from the fields for processing. This view is appropriate as agricultural commodities such as coffee, henequen and rubber formed the basis of the economy of the region. This note is also a first for the collection in that the punch holes on the Specimen notes from this Bank are of two different sizes.

https://papermoneyofmexico.com/index.php/history/chiapas/banco-chiapas