1839 Havana Cuba £400 Bill of Exchange – P.A. Mesier 28 Wall St. New York – London

Original 1839 Cuban bill of exchange issued in Havana during the Spanish colonial period, featuring an ornate lithographed form produced in New York by P. A. Mesier’s Lithography, 28 Wall Street.

Dated Havana, January 14, 1839, this historic financial document is identified as the Third Bill of Exchange (“Tercera de Cambio”) and was issued for £400 Sterling, payable at sixty days sight.

The document is associated with the prominent Havana commercial house Rebuelta Demestre y Compañía, a firm documented in 19th-century Cuban commercial records. Other surviving bills of exchange from the same firm and year are known, while an 1840 Rebuelta Demestre bill was important enough to be discussed in the Revista de la Biblioteca Nacional in 1912.

Of particular interest is the small printed lithographer’s credit at lower left:

“P. A. Mesier’s Lith. 28 Wall St. N. York.”

P. A. Mesier’s New York lithographic establishment is independently documented producing work at 28 Wall Street during this same period, including surviving examples dated 1839.

The bill retains extensive original handwritten entries, signatures and endorsements on both sides. One prominent signature on the lower front appears to read Manuel Echarte, although this attribution has not been independently confirmed.

An evocative piece of 19th-century Atlantic commercial and financial history, connecting Havana, New York and London through the international bill-of-exchange system.

The exact original document shown in the photographs is the item you will receive.

Condition

Original antique document with age-related toning, fold lines, creasing, edge wear, small tears and areas of discoloration consistent with a paper financial document dating from 1839. Original manuscript ink remains clearly visible, with additional period endorsements and writing on the reverse. Please examine all photographs carefully for exact condition.

Product details

Date: January 14, 1839
Place: Havana, Cuba
Period: Spanish Colonial Cuba
Document type: Bill of Exchange / Tercera de Cambio
Amount: £400 Sterling
Term: 60 days sight
Commercial house: Rebuelta Demestre y Compañía
Lithographer: P. A. Mesier’s Lithography
Lithographer address: 28 Wall Street, New York
Destination/payment connection: London
Language: Spanish / manuscript and printed text
Original: Yes