Catalog
1/2 Dinar
| Issuer | Central Bank of Iraq |
|---|---|
| Year | 1980-1985 |
| Type | Standard circulation banknote |
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| Obverse description | Brown and multicolour note with an intricate guilloche underprint in light tones. A detailed vignette of an astrolabe occupies the right portion of the face, rendered in intaglio with fine ornamental detail. Arabic inscriptions appear centrally giving the denomination and issuer, with the date in both Hijri and Gregorian calendars, alongside serial numbers at upper left and lower left; signature varieties 21 and 22 are known. |
|---|---|
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| Reverse lettering | Central Bank of Iraq Half Dinar المئذنة الملوية - سامراء |
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| Comments |
Pick 68 covers the issue period spanning the opening years of the Iran-Iraq War, a conflict that placed enormous strain on Iraq's foreign currency reserves and forced the government to tighten import controls while simultaneously ramping up military expenditure. Small-denomination notes like this half-dinar remained in heavy everyday circulation throughout, absorbing the wear of a wartime economy that had little room for routine currency replacement.
The watermark is the sole security feature — no security thread, no fluorescent inks. For a central bank note of this period, that is notably sparse, reflecting either cost constraints or a judgment that low-value denominations weren't worth protecting against sophisticated forgery.