500 Australes ARG Banknote (Various Bank Issues) 1991

500 Australes Peso (Issued 1991)

The 500 Australes note issued by the Provincia de Jujuy in 1991 represents one of Argentina’s most turbulent monetary episodes, when chronic hyperinflation and central government fiscal collapse compelled individual provinces to issue their own emergency bearer bonds as quasi-currency. Jujuy’s provincial government authorised this instrument under Ley Nº 4439/89, Article 28, as a Título Público al Portador — a publicly issued bearer title — enabling it to circulate in place of federally issued banknotes. The issue carries an expiry date of 31 December 1991, underlining its nature as a short-term emergency instrument rather than a permanent currency. These provincial quasi-banknotes, sometimes called “patacones” or “lecops” in broader Argentine parlance, are a vivid documentary record of provincial fiscal crisis during the Austral currency era.

On the front, the note is printed predominantly in shades of deep rose, carmine, and warm brown on cream paper, with a dense guilloché border running along all four edges, creating an intricate repeating lace-like frame typical of security printing of the period. In the upper left, a bold denomination panel displays “A500” — using the Austral symbol — rendered in dark brown ink within an oval cartouche with fine lathe-work hatching. To the right of this panel, the issuing authority is declared in prominent serif typography: “PROVINCIA DE JUJUY” in large capitals, followed by “TITULO PUBLICO AL PORTADOR” and the legal authority “LEY Nº 4439/89 – ART. 28”. The large denomination text “QUINIENTOS AUSTRALES” appears in bold capitals across the centre-right of the note. A central vignette on the left side depicts a historical scene in fine intaglio-style line engraving, showing a group of figures on horseback and on foot before a building with a bell tower, rendered in the same carmine-rose palette, evoking a colonial or independence-era scene consistent with Argentine patriotic iconography. Below the central vignette, two signature lines are present, labelled “MINISTRO DE ECONOMÍA” and “GOBERNADOR” respectively, with manuscript-style signatures appearing above each title. The serial number 00462536 appears twice — once in the upper right corner and once in the lower left — printed in dark brown ink. The series designation “SERIE H” is printed in the upper centre. An expiry declaration reads “FECHA DE CADUCIDAD: 31 DE DICIEMBRE DE 1991” along the lower portion of the note. The overall printing shows the hallmarks of emergency issue production, with flat lithographic colour rather than the deep intaglio relief of formal central bank notes, though the guilloché work retains a degree of security detail.

The reverse is printed in the same carmine-rose and brown palette on the cream substrate, and is given over almost entirely to dense printed legal text rather than decorative imagery. A heading reads “PROVINCIA DE JUJUY – TITULO PUBLICO AL PORTADOR” in bold serif capitals across the top. Below this, a series of numbered articles — Artículo 1 through Artículo 6 and a concluding decreto reference — set out in small but legible typeface the full legal authority and conditions governing the issuance of these bearer bonds, citing multiple provincial decrees and laws including Decreto Nº 4062-H-85, Decreto Nº 4072-H-86, Decreto Nº 4163-H-88, Decreto Nº 4187-H-90, and others. The text references the Sociedad del Estado Casa de Moneda as the printing authority, and confirms the total issuance limit of two billion Australes (A$ 2,000,000,000). A further guilloché background pattern is visible beneath the text block, providing a subtle security ground in the same rose tones. The bottom of the reverse carries the decree reference “DECRETO Nº 10.464-E-89”, completing the legal framework of this emergency bearer instrument.

If you have a 500 Australes Provincia de Jujuy bearer note to exchange, Webuyallcurrency.com takes it as part of its leftover currency service, combining your Argentine Pesos banknotes with other world coins and banknotes in one easy payout.

• Indicate the quantity of 500 Australes Peso banknotes you want to exchange
• Click the ‘Add to your account’ button
• Your online account now shows the exchange value

Webuyallcurrency.com is a simple way to exchange or sell foreign coins and banknotes for cash — current or withdrawn — turning your Argentine Pesos banknotes and any other leftover currency into one straightforward payout.