Colombia · Banco de la República · Replacement

5 pesos oro · replacement · 1979

A replacement five-peso oro dated 1 April 1979: Pick 406f / Hernández 156. Serial 00141180. The asterisk to the left of GERENTE identifies the variety. This record gathers the face and back of the same unslabbed note, in a sleeve.

Catalog facts

Pick reference: P# 406f · Hernández 156
Serial number: 00141180
Signatures: Rafael Gama Quijano (gerente) and Francisco José Ortega (secretario)
Condition: Unslabbed · in a sleeve
Printage: Imprenta de Billetes, Bogotá. Banco de la República circulation issue; date on the note 1 April 1979. Eight digits, no series letter. This piece is the replacement variety: Hernández (8th ed., 2023) numbers it Cód. 156 — Numista concurs Hernández 156, distinct from Cód. 155 of the circulating note of the same date (P# 406f / TBB B949o). The diagnostic on this holding is the asterisk to the left of GERENTE on the face; Hernández describes neighbouring replacements of this face value (Cód. 150, 153, and 160) as “asterisco en el anverso.” Annex 2 gives the 1 April 1979 asterisk interval as 00100731–00135113; serial 00141180 does not sit in that interval. González White 2019 (p. 60) lists Reposición asterisco rows on the 1973–1981 spread; a band 00.100.010–00.164.380 includes 00.141.180. The spread’s OCR jumbles BG# against dates: no guessed BG# is published here. Published size: 140 × 70 mm. The Bank Note Museum groups type 406f under 01.10.1978, 01.04.1979, 01.01.1980, and 01.01.1981, without a security thread. BanRep’s 1979 table records 109.5 million 5-peso notes — a denomination-year total, not this replacement’s printage. This record does not invent a printage or replace Hernández’s interval or White’s band with that total.

Face of the 1 April 1979 replacement 5 pesos oro: condor, José María Córdova, serial 00141180, and the asterisk to the left of GERENTE.

Back of the 1 April 1979 replacement 5 pesos oro: the walls of Cartagena, the Banco de la República seal, and the figures 5.

The note

The Banco de la República ordered this five-peso oro of the Pick 406 family (1961–1981) from its own Imprenta de Billetes, opened in Bogotá on 23 October 1959. The face, green and brown on a multicolour underprint, carries an Andean condor with spread wings at left and José María Córdova’s portrait at right — the paper reads “CORDOBA,” the spelling González White notes on the type. At center is the promise to pay the bearer five gold pesos. The serials are in red: 00141180, once at upper left and once at lower right. There is no series letter. The printed date is “ABRIL 1º DE 1979” over “BOGOTA, COLOMBIA.” The signatures are those of Rafael Gama Quijano (gerente) and Francisco José Ortega (secretario), the pair Numista assigns to this date (RGQ, FJO). The replacement diagnostic is not in the serial: it is the asterisk to the left of the title GERENTE. Hernández (8th ed., 2023) numbers that row Cód. 156, distinct from circulating Cód. 155; neighbouring replacements of this face value (Cód. 150 of 20 July 1977, Cód. 153 of 1 October 1978, and Cód. 160 of 1 January 1981) he describes as “asterisco en el anverso.” Numista labels the 156 row “star on reverse”; on this holding the mark is on the face. Pick numbers the ordinary type as 406f (TBB B949o for the circulating date). The back shows the walls of Cartagena — labelled “CARTAGENA”; Castillo San Felipe de Barajas in English-language catalogs — and the bank’s Liberty seal. Type 406f, per the Bank Note Museum, has no security thread. Distinct from this case’s 1980 circulating example (serial 94658896, Hernández 157) and from the 1960 specimen (Pick 405s). This collection piece is shown in a sleeve, unslabbed.

Scarcity and printage

The 1 April 1979 replacement is a recognized variety and substantially scarcer than the ordinary issue of that date (Hernández Cód. 155 / TBB B949o). Numista marks the Hernández 156 row’s frequency at 0% among owners of type N# 206002; that figure is a catalog-population estimate, not an official printage. Hernández’s annex 2 gives the asterisk interval 00100731–00135113 for this date; 00141180 sits outside it. González White 2019 (p. 60) publishes Reposición asterisco bands; 00.141.180 sits in 00.100.010–00.164.380. Pick does not list replacements separately. BanRep’s 1979 table records 109.5 million 5-peso notes: that is the year’s total for the face value, not this replacement’s printage. This record does not invent a printage or republish Hernández price columns.

Population

A PMG or PCGS census for serial 00141180 has not been independently verified. The note is shown in a sleeve, unslabbed.

Sources

Numista — Colombia 5 pesos oro, N# 206002 (opens in a new tab)
01.04.1979 replacement: Hernández 156; signatures RGQ and FJO; Numista labels the row “star on reverse” (0% frequency). The circulating date is P# 406f / TBB B949o / Hernández 155, without a thread. Printer: Imprenta de Billetes, Bogotá. 140 × 70 mm.
Bank Note Museum — Colombia P-406, 5 pesos oro (1961–1981) (opens in a new tab)
406f: 01.10.1978, 01.04.1979, 01.01.1980, and 01.01.1981; condor and José María Córdoba on the face; Cartagena on the back; no security thread. Distinct from Pick 405 (bank building, 1960). Does not split the replacement.
Banco de la República — Banknote and coin production and circulation (opens in a new tab)
1979 production: 109.5 million 5-peso notes. That is the year’s total for the face value, not the printage of 1 April 1979 or of this replacement.
Pedro Pablo Hernández — Coins and Banknotes of Colombia (Numista L100183) (opens in a new tab)
8th ed. 2023 (Numista L100183). Cód. 155: circulating 1 April 1979; Cód. 156: replacement of the same date. Annex 2 (p. 322) gives the asterisk interval 00100731–00135113, which does not include 00141180. Numista cites Hernández 156 for that row; that H# matches the 2023 Cód. Price columns and plates are not republished.

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