Catalog
5 Pesos Oro
| Issuer | Banco de la República |
|---|---|
| Year | 1961-1981 |
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| Reference(s) | P#406 |
| Obverse description | Printed in deep greenish black and deep brown on a multicolor guilloche underprint, the obverse bears a vignette of a condor at the left and an intaglio portrait of General José María Córdoba at the right. The denomination and issuing bank name appear within the surrounding letterpress legends against an intricate lathe-work border. |
|---|---|
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| Reverse description | The central vignette presents an intaglio view of the fortress of San Felipe de Barajas in Cartagena, rendered in dark greenish black against a lightly tinted multicolor guilloche background. A circular medallion at the top centre contains a classical allegorical female bust encircled by the bank legend, while elaborate green and pink lathe-work panels flanking the fortress carry the numeral "5" and the inscription "PESOS ORO" at each side. The denomination is restated in a banner at the foot of the note reading "CINCO PESOS ORO", with the caption "CARTAGENA" placed discreetly below the fortress vignette. |
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| Comments |
The Banco de la República's long-running 5 Pesos Oro series stretched across two full decades, an unusually stable presence given how frequently Colombian denominations were revised or demonetized during the same period. By the time the series closed in 1981, inflation had so badly eroded the peso's purchasing power that the 5-unit note was functionally worthless in daily commerce — it remained in circulation largely by bureaucratic inertia.
Printed by the American Bank Note Company, the series is known for date-related varieties that attract specialist attention, particularly the transition years where plate modifications are subtle but documentable.