122 | Spanish Banknotes

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Definitive black proof of the obverse and reverse of an unissued 20,000 Pesetas "El Conde de Floridablanca" banknote. The proposed issue date of February 2, 1990, is known, although it is not printed. This was designed by José López López-Pavía. (The numerator font is typical of FNMT projects from the 1980s and 1990s.) (Edifil 2023: NE72P, NE72Pb, Pick: Unlisted). This piece is extremely spectacular and rare, especially considering both proofs are included. Uncirculated. Encapsulated PMG64/66EPQ.

The long banknote issue developed since the transition was the first to be conceived as a whole with a specific dimensional and color logic, in addition to featuring a groundbreaking design by José María Cruz Novillo. This 1979-1985 issue represented a definitive transgression not only of aesthetic canons (no borders, the watermark in a different place, oversized and partially cropped portraits), but also of the traditional limits of banknote denominations, in which 1,000 pesetas represented the highest denomination. During the Civil War, the Republican faction was on the verge of issuing a 5,000-peseta banknote, but it wouldn't be until Juan Carlos I's first issue that the barrier was definitively broken and that denomination was issued.

A few years later, in the midst of the inflation crisis, Spain needed higher-denomination banknotes. The 5,000-peseta note from 1979 became one of the most widely issued in history, but it wasn't enough. Shortly after, the FNMT embarked on the first 10,000-peseta note in history, dated 1985. But even so, it didn't seem enough, and in 1990, the Bank of Spain planned to put a 20,000-peseta note into circulation in the spring of 1991. Only a single copy of that project exists, the one shown here.

The designs for the 1979-1985 issue were originally intended to honor famous writers, with the highest denomination reserved for the king, as a tribute to the political transition. The same idea was used when the 10,000-peseta denomination was issued, effectively distorting the writers' original idea. This 20,000-peseta design again featured the king, in this case accompanied on the reverse by José Moñino, Count of Floridablanca.

Stylistically, this design departs from the design established by Cruz Novillo in 1979 (the king's head is smaller and Floridablanca's is cut off, as proposed in that issue) and is situated in a transition with the 1992 issue. The number of graphic elements (something that increased in these later banknotes) is located this time on the reverse and seems to be excessive and varied, because the idea of the National Bank of San Carlos (building and certificate) is mixed with the Royal Customs House, which also dates from the time of Charles III but has no relation to the figure or the bank, but rather is the headquarters of the Ministry of Finance. In any case, seeing how the 1992 design evolved, it is likely that some of these designs were diluted in background tones or similar colors to provide texture without interfering with the figure.

There were other sketches, some spectacular, conceived for the commemoration of the Fifth Anniversary of the Discovery of America, which contemplated values higher than 10,000 pesetas and which also never came to fruition, but it was this 20,000-peseta project that came closest to seeing the light of day.