| Description |
This 5 pesos banknote, printed between 1885 and 1913, depicts the upper-class woman Manuela García-Turela Manso and the Greek goddess of prosperity and abundance on the right. Manuela was the first real woman to appear on Mexican paper money, and belonged to one of the families that controlled the state branch of the Banco Nacional de México.
Manuela was born to an aristocratic family in Puebla who presided over the state branch of the Banco Nacional de México and owned multiple properties. Manuela was under intense social pressure to uphold the standards expected of a daughter and wife in aristocracy. The persisting rumor is that Antonio Mier y Celis, one of the richest men in the nation and the Banco de México's Board of Directors President at the time, fell in love with her. He insistently requested Manuela be his mistress, but she declined. He then published her effigy on the money in circulation. This was devastating for Manuela, because in 19th century Mexico, it was thought that whoever surrendered their image also gave away a portion of their body and soul. In addition, for Manuela to appear on a product linked to the public sphere and economics–both issues tied to masculinity– was utterly inappropriate for a woman of her standing.
The Porfiriato regime in Mexico established a number of credit laws during the end of the 19th century that permitted the creation of private banks with the authority to issue banknotes. This allowed two banks, the Banco Nacional Mexicano and the Banco Mercantil Mexicano, to launch independently. Two years after their establishment, both of these institutions merged in 1884 to become the Banco Nacional de México. That same year, the first series of bank notes by the newly established national bank began to circulate. Among them was the first effigy of a woman on Mexican paper money. Manuela García-Turela Manso appeared on many denominations of currency, including largest denominations of the day, 500 and 1,000 pesos. The use of her image on national currency was done without her knowledge or consent and was prompted by the resentment of an unfulfilled lover.
Manuela is pictured next to Euthenia, Greek goddess of prosperity and abundance. She is often associated with the cornucopia, as pictured above. |
| Bibliography |
Batiz Vazquez, Jose Antonio. Historia del papel moneda en México. Mexico City, Mexico: Fomento Cultural Banamex, 1985.; Castelli Olvera. “Manuela García-Teruel Manso” Religación.
Carner, Françoise et al. “Estereotipos Femeninos En El Siglo XIX.” El Colegio de México, 1987. https://doi.org/10.2307/j.ctvhn0cdb.9.
Castelli Olvera, Azul Kikey. “Manuela García-Teruel Manso, Una Señorita Decimonónica En El Billete.” Religación, September 12, 2022. https://doi.org/10.46652/rgn.v7i33.938.
“Datos Relevantes Del Nuevo Billete de 1000 Pesos G.” Banco de México. Accessed August 10, 2023. https://www.banxico.org.mx/billetes-y-monedas/d/%7BE53145AB-3A19-397A-4876-FF0F45F2AC80%7D.PDF.
“Family Tree of Manuela García-Teruel Manso.” Geneanet. Accessed August 3, 2023. https://cutt.ly/2KrASn4.
“Mexican Banknotes 10 Pesos Banknote El Banco Nacional de Mexico, 1885 -1913.” Coins and Banknotes. Accessed August 10, 2023. http://coinsbanknotesworld.blogspot.com/2013/05/Mexican-banknotes-10-Pesos-banknote-Banco-Nacional-Mexico.html.
Museo Banco de México. “No. de Inventario: BIN1743,” Colección Numismática, accessed August 2, 2023, https://museobancodemexico.mx/LabNum/TemplateObjeto.html?BIN1743.
Museo Banco de México. “Proliferación de billetes de bancos nacionales y bancos regionales” Dinero en el tiempo, accessed August 3, 2023, https://museobancodemexico.mx/dinero-en-el-tiempo/.
Zárate Toscano, Verónica, & Eduardo Flores Clair “La iconografía Del Papel Moneda En México, Siglos XIX Y XX”. Historias, n.º 104, June 28, 2021. https://revistas.inah.gob.mx/index.php/historias/article/view/16980. |
