Colombian Pesos

Below, you can see the currency we are currently spending. The largest bill is 50,000 pesos (about $25 USD), at the top left.


I really like the pictures on the currency. The faces have a lot of character. According to Wikipedia, these people are:

• Jorge Isaacs (50,000), a famous writer and politician from Cali.
• Julio Garavito Armero (20,000), a child prodigy and distinguished scientist. A crater on the moon is named for him.
• Policarpa Salavarrieta (10,000) was a seamstress who spied for the revolutionary army of Colombia at a time when Spain was trying to regain control of S. America (for which she was executed).
• José Asunción Silva (5,000), Colombia´s most celebrated poet.
• Francisco de Paula Santander (2,000), a military and political leaders during the struggle for independence.
• Jorge Eliécer Gaitán (1,000) an early to mid 20th century politician and populist leader who was assassinated.

The coins are quite pretty as well:

Curiously, to me anyway, there is no bill featuring the man widely considered the architect of the independence not only of Colombia, but almost all of S. America: Simón Bolívar.