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5 Afghanis - Muhammed Zahir Shah
| Issuer | Da Afghanistan Bank |
|---|---|
| Year | 1961 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | 5 Afghanis (أفغاني) (5 AFA) |
| Currency | Log in to see details |
| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Diameter | Log in to see details |
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| Obverse description | Uniformed bust of King Mohammed Zahir Shah facing slightly left, depicted in military dress with epaulettes visible on the shoulders. An Arabic legend arcs above the portrait across the upper field, reading the ruler's name and country. The Solar Hijri date 1340 appears to the lower left of the effigy and the Gregorian year 1961 to the lower right, flanking the portrait symmetrically within the flat field. |
|---|---|
| Obverse script | Log in to see details |
| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Reverse description | A large Eastern Arabic numeral 5 dominates the central field, flanked on either side by a single upright wheat ear, their stems meeting at the base. The word پنج (Five) is inscribed in Arabic script above the numeral at the top of the field, while the denomination افغانی (Afghani) appears in Arabic script below, completing the value inscription within a clean, unadorned design. |
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| Additional information |
Afghanistan's shift to nickel-plated steel coinage in the early 1960s was driven largely by chronic metal shortages and IMF-backed currency stabilization efforts following years of budgetary strain under Zahir Shah's government. The 1961 issues came just as Afghanistan was navigating delicate Cold War-era relationships with both the Soviet Union and the United States, each providing competing development aid. Soviet engineers were building roads in the north while American money flowed into Helmand Valley irrigation projects — the coinage circulating through all of it.