Main feature of the obverse side of the banknote is the engraving of Ivan Milev, a noted Bulgarian 1920s artist. the background shows details of his painting "Art and the Crown of Thorns", decorative motifs from his other works, passages from his letters and a monogram from a bill advertising his first exhibition, held in Sofia in 1925. Ivan Milev (1897 -1927), painter, avant-garde stage designer, and one of the circle who defined the fin-de-siecle in Bulgarian art. Gifted with the potent imagination and strong stylistic sensibility, he sought inspiration and models in village life and folk songs, legends and beliefs to create supple images rich in Bulgarian tradition and spirit.

The reverse shows fragments from his paintings "A Woman Harvesting", "The Bulgarian Madonna", and "Wedding of the Dragon".

Background colour - burgundy red.
Paper - 100% cotton, in pink tones.
Dimensions - 121 x 67 mm.

Security Features
Anti-copy Stripe - a hologram stripe consisting of alternating images of a stylized flower (an element of the design on the reverse of the banknote), the digit "5" and the text "ËÅÂÀ" (LEVS) appearing as miniprint, which change their colour when seen from a different angle.
Security Thread - a thread incorporated in the banknote paper with initials "ÁÍÁ 5" (BNB 5) appearing as a negative microprint.
Watermark - a half-tone outline of the portrait depicted on the banknote.
Fluorescence - elements of the pattern, serial numbers and fibres in the paper fluoresce under UV light.
Transparent register element - when the banknote is held against the light the digit "5" is seen in a square checkered field.
Microprint on the obverse - the text "ÈÂÀÍ ÌÈËÅÂ" (IVAN MILEV) to the left of the portrait and in the two vertical lines to the right of the portrait; the text "5 ËÅÂÀ" (5 LEVS) printed within the boundaries of the denomination digit "5".
Microprint on the reverse - alternating lines with the texts "ÈÂÀÍ ÌÈËÅÂ" (IVAN MILEV) and "1897 - 1927" form a stripe on the left side of the banknote; alternating lines with the texts "ÈÂÀÍ ÌÈËÅÂ" (IVAN MILEV) and "1897 - 1927" printed within the boundaries of the harvester's sleeve; the digit "5" under the harvester's hand.
The obverse of the banknote features the embossed portrait, the texts "ÁÚËÃÀÐÑÊÀ ÍÀÐÎÄÍÀ ÁÀÍÊÀ", "ÏÅÒ ËÅÂÀ" (BULGARIAN NATIONAL BANK, FIVE LEVS), the digit of the denomination "5", the vignette, and the text "5 ËÅÂÀ" (5 LEVS) on the anti-copy stripe.
Designation for blind people - two embossed triangles pointed upwards.