100 Manat Heydar Aliyev

Issued to commemorate Heydar Aliyev, who died in December 2003 after ruling Azerbaijan for the better part of three decades — first as First Secretary of the Soviet Azerbaijani republic from 1969, then as post-independence president from 1993 until illness forced him to step down weeks before his death. The National Bank authorized this gold issue within months of his passing, part of a rapid state memorialization campaign that also encompassed street renamings, a new airport designation in Baku, and a national public holiday.

The .9167 fineness places it in the traditional 22-karat category, consistent with sovereign gold coinage conventions rather than the .999 standard common to modern bullion issues.