Released by the Banco de la República in 2020, this 5000 Pesos banknote continues to honor the celebrated poet José Asunción Silva. The obverse presents his portrait alongside delicate floral patterns and security designs inspired by Colombian flora.
On the reverse, Silva is depicted seated in a contemplative pose within a lush natural setting, reflecting the themes of his romantic poetry. Printed on high-quality cotton paper, it measures 140 × 70 mm and includes advanced security features such as a watermark with his portrait, security thread, microtext, color-shifting elements, and raised printing.
Obverse
Poet Jose Silva standing in the center in the middle of the honeycomb (inside which there are various geometrical figures and the name of the issuing bank), his back towards the viewer and holding an umbrella behind him. His portrait on the right.
Puya plant (Paepalanthus columbiensis) and a bee between the watermark and the standing figure. Issuer and country name on lower left, face value in numbers an letters on top left, and in letters, turned 90º on right. Five in braille to the right of the country name.
Scripts: Braille, Latin
Lettering:
5 MIL PESOS
PUYA
Paepalanthus columbiensis
BANCO DE LA REPUBLICA
COLOMBIA
JOSE ASUNCION SILVA
POETA COLOMBIANO
(1865-1896)
CINCO MIL
PESOS
Translation:
5 thousand Pesos
Puya
Paepalanthus columbiensis
Bank of the Republic
Colombia
Jose Asuncion Silva
Colombian poet
(1865-1896)
Five thousand Pesos
Reverse
View of the Andes mountains with rivers flowing down, high-elevation plants, a bear, a condor and a bumblebee.
To upper right, a poem by Jose A. Silva, and bank seal, face value in numbers and letters on top left, in letters on lower right.
Script: Latin
Lettering:
5 MIL PESOS
MELANCOLÍA
“De todo lo velado,
tenue, lejana y misteriosa surge
vaga melancolía
que del ideal al cielo nos conduce.
He mirado reflejos de ese cielo
en la brillante lumbre
con que ahuyenta las sombras, la mirada
de sus ojos azules.
Leve cadena de oro
que una alma a otra alma con sus hilos une
oculta simpatía,
que en lo profundo de lo ignoto bulle,
y que en las realidades de la vida
se pierde y se consume
cual se pierde una gota de rocío
sobre las yerbas que el sepulcro cubren.”
JOSÉ ASUNCIÓN SILVA
PARAMOS DE COLOMBIA
FUENTES DE AGUA
ABEJORRO
Bombus sp.
CINCO MIL
PESOS
Translation:
5 thousand Pesos
Melancholy
“Of all that is veiled,
Faint, distant and mysterious arises
vague melancholy
that leads us from the ideal to heaven.
I have looked at reflections of that sky
in the bright fire
with which he chases away the shadows, the gaze
of his blue eyes.
Slight gold chain
that one soul to another soul with its threads unites
hidden sympathy,
that in the depths of the unknown bustles,
and that in the realities of life
is lost and consumed
like loses a drop of dew
on the herbs that the tomb covers.”
José Asunción Silva
Moors of Colombia
Bumblebee
Bombus sp.
Five thousand
Pesos
Watermark
Jose A. Silva and electrotype “5”.
© RuibaiK (CC BY-NC)
Printer
Imprenta de Billetes, Bogotá, Colombia.
Features
| Issuer | Colombia |
|---|---|
| Issuing bank | Banco de la Republica de Colombia |
| Ruling authority | Republic (1886-date) |
| Type | Standard circulation banknotes |
| Years | 2015-2022 |
| Value | 5000 Pesos 5000 COP = USD 1.24 |
| Currency | Peso decimalized (1847-date) |
| Composition | Paper |
| Size | 133 × 66 mm |
| Shape | Rectangular |
