20 VEF #575

Front

Two loggerhead sea turtles (Caretta caretta) swimming, with the inscription identifying them as being from "Montañas de Macanao, Parque Nacional Laguna de La Restinga." The loggerhead turtle is an endangered marine species that nests on Venezuelan Caribbean shores; Laguna de La Restinga National Park on Margarita Island is a critical mangrove and coastal ecosystem habitat. The Venezuelan coat of arms appears at left, featuring the traditional tricolor shield with symbols of agricultural abundance, military victory, and independence. A small turtle icon in the upper right corner serves as a see-through register with the back.

Back

Luisa Cáceres de Arismendi (1799–1866), Venezuelan independence heroine and wife of independence fighter Juan Bautista Arismendi. At age 15 she was imprisoned by Spanish royalist forces in 1815 as leverage against her husband's guerrilla resistance on Margarita Island; she endured torture and harsh conditions while pregnant, giving birth in captivity to a daughter who died shortly after. Despite immense suffering she refused to betray the patriot cause. Released in 1816 after prisoner exchanges, she became a symbol of Venezuelan women's courage and sacrifice during the wars of independence. Her portrait is adapted from a painting by Martín Tovar y Tovar. The denomination is printed vertically at left as "CINCUENTA BOLÍVARES" and the note bears the serial number K61426335.

History

This note belongs to the Bolívar Fuerte ("strong bolívar") series introduced on 1 January 2008 as part of a currency reform that removed three zeros from the previous bolívar. The reform was enacted under President Hugo Chávez to address hyperinflation and simplify transactions. The series ran from 2007 (first print date) through 2018 and featured Venezuelan wildlife and independence heroes. The 20 bolívares fuertes denomination depicted loggerhead sea turtles on the front and independence heroine Luisa Cáceres de Arismendi on the back. The Bolívar Fuerte was itself replaced on 20 August 2018 by the Bolívar Soberano, which removed five zeros in response to accelerating hyperinflation; all Bolívar Fuerte notes were demonetized on that date. The note was printed by Casa de la Moneda de Venezuela and features modern security elements including a windowed security thread, holographic foil patch, microprinting, UV-reactive inks, intaglio printing, and a see-through register (the turtle icon that aligns front-to-back). The serial number format follows standard BCV practice with a letter prefix and eight-digit numeric sequence.