The BCRA has Launched a New Banknote Series Called “Heroines and Heroes of the Nation,” with ARS1,000 Banknote Featuring General San Martín

Today, the BCRA has released into circulation the ARS1,000 banknote featuring the portrait of José de San Martín. The banknote will be gradually distributed through the network of bank branches across the country. The new banknote series represents the return of historical figures who forged our country.

The “Heroines and Heroes of the Nation” series features notable figures of Argentine history, as follows: ARS1,000 banknote, General José de San Martín; ARS500 banknote, María Remedios del Valle and Manuel Belgrano; ARS200 banknote, Martín Miguel de Güemes and Juana Azurduy; and ARS100 banknote, María Eva Duarte de Perón.

The new ARS1,000 banknote will circulate alongside the current banknote of the same denomination.

As regards design, one of the main features is that it can be read horizontally on both sides. The portrait of José de San Martín is featured on the obverse. The design is taken from Juan Bautista Madou’s lithography that served as the basis for most of the engravings for banknotes featuring a young General San Martín in uniform. An image of the crossing of the Andes—that started on January 17, 1817—is featured on the reverse.

The banknote has the same main colors and size as the current banknote of the same denomination. The banknote was designed by the BCRA in collaboration with Argentina’s Mint.

Security Features

The new ARS1,000 banknote has strict security features, such as the following:

Watermark: the portrait of San Martín and his initials become visible when holding up the banknote against the light.

Windowed security thread: golden security thread woven—in three windows—into the banknote with an image of the eternal flame. The thread changes color as the banknote is tilted, with a dynamic effect. A continuous band with the acronym BCRA becomes visible when holding up the banknote against the light.

Optical variability ink: the image of the eternal flame changes color from violet to bronze as the banknote is tilted, with a raised effect.

Latent image: the initials RA become visible when the banknote is held up horizontally at eye level and to the light.

See-through register: when holding the banknote up to the light, an image on the obverse and reverse combine to form the 1,000 denomination. As for the features for the visually impaired, the banknote has a series of raised lines along its short edges.

Tribute to José de San Martín

José de San Martín, Father of the Nation and the Liberator, led the struggle for emancipation of Argentina, Chile and Perú, and is one of the most emblematic and important figures of the Spanish-American wars of independence.

After training as a military officer in Spain, in 1812 he returned to Buenos Aires to join the independence movement.

He created the Regiment of Mounted Grenadiers, commanded the Army of the North and was governor of Cuyo. He planned and executed the continental strategy with the objective of eliminating all the royalists that maintained the colonial system in the Americas. He led the heroic crossing of the Andes with an army that was decisive in the independence of Chile and Perú.

July 14, 2023