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500 Tenge Zahir
| Issuer | National Bank of Kazakhstan |
|---|---|
| Year | 2012 |
| Type | Non-circulating coin |
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| Obverse description | Central design features a stylized horseshoe arch motif containing a decorative spiral ornament in the field, rendered in high relief against a polished gold background. The arch device is characteristic of Islamic architectural ornamentation. The legend ҚАЗАҚСТАН ҰЛТТЫҚ БАНКІ arcs along the upper periphery in Cyrillic script, while the denomination 500 ТЕҢГЕ and date 2012 appear in the lower field. The fineness mark Au 999 and mint mark KMC are inscribed within the lower portion of the design. |
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| Reverse lettering | ZAHIR |
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| Additional information |
Kazakhstan's "Zahir" coin takes its name and concept from the Jorge Luis Borges short story published in 1949, in which an ordinary coin becomes an object of obsessive, all-consuming fixation — once seen, it cannot be forgotten. The National Bank issued this piece as part of a broader literary and philosophical series, an unusual commissioning choice for a central bank better known for energy-sector commemoratives.
The Borges connection gives this otherwise small gold piece an unusually specific collector rationale: it is one of the few modern bullion-adjacent issues with a verifiable literary origin rather than a patriotic or wildlife theme.