Guatemala banknotes 1 Quetzal banknote 1926-1945 Banco Central de Guatemala
Obverse: Portrait General Jose Maria Orellana Pinto at left, dock stevedores loading bales with steam crane in background and Quetzal Bird on pillar at left. In the top, the issuer name "BANCO CENTRAL DE GUATEMALA". In each corner, the denomination value "1" within a guilloche.
Reverse: Monolith of Quirigua (South Side of monolith "F") at center and value "1" in oval guilloche at right. In the top, the issuer name "BANCO CENTRAL DE GUATEMALA".
Printer: Waterlow & Sons Limited, London England.
Guatemala banknotes - Guatemala paper money
Banco Central de Guatemala
1926-1945
1 Quetzal 2 Quetzales 5 Quetzales 10 Quetzales 20 Quetzales 100 Quetzales
Quirigua is an ancient Maya archaeological site in the department of Izabal in south-eastern Guatemala. It is a medium-sized site covering approximately 3 square kilometres (1.2 sq mi) along the lower Motagua River, with the ceremonial center about 1 km (0.6 mi) from the north bank. During the Maya Classic Period (AD 200–900), Quiriguá was situated at the juncture of several important trade routes. The site was occupied by 200, construction on the acropolis had begun by about 550, and an explosion of grander construction started in the 8th century. All construction had halted by about 850, except for a brief period of reoccupation in the Early Postclassic (c. 900 – c. 1200). Quiriguá shares its architectural and sculptural styles with the nearby Classic Period city of Copán, with whose history it is closely entwined.
Quiriguá's rapid expansion in the 8th century was tied to king K'ak' Tiliw Chan Yopaat's military victory over Copán in 738. When the greatest king of Copán, Uaxaclajuun Ub'aah K'awiil or "18-Rabbit", was defeated, he was captured and then sacrificed in the Great Plaza at Quiriguá. Before this, Quiriguá had been a vassal state of Copán, but it maintained its independence afterwards. The ceremonial architecture at Quiriguá is quite modest, but the site's importance lies in its wealth of sculpture, including the tallest stone monumental sculpture ever erected in the New World.