Description

This is a Peruvian hacienda token (necessity money), dated 1878, issued by Hacienda Santa, owned by Dionisio Derteano, a prominent figure of the 19th-century Peruvian elite. These tokens, here valued at 10 centavos, were used as internal currency to pay agricultural workers, often on sugarcane or cotton plantations, as suggested by the sheaf depicted on the reverse. The token functioned as a voucher valid only within the hacienda itself. This type of token reflects the semi-feudal system of large agricultural estates in Latin America at the time.