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| Bahraini dinar |
Currency of Bahrain 1 Dinar banknote 1967 Bahrain Currency Board
Obverse: The front of each note contains the name of the Currency Board in Arabic at the top centre, the crest of the Ruler of Bahrain to the right, a sailing dhow to the left and a two beached dhows in the centre. The denominational values appear in each corner. The notes are signed by Shaikh Khlifah bin Sulman al Khalifah, Chairman of the Currency Board. All text on the front of the notes is in Arabic, while all text on the back of the notes is in English. The watermark on all notes is the head of a falcon (and is located to the left of the notes), while a solid security thread runs vertically through the notes to the right of centre.
Reverse: The 1-dinar note depicts old Bahrain, showing the ruins of the Suq al Khamis mosque. The remnants of the Suq al Khamis (Thursday Market) mosque are one of the oldest relics of Islam in the whole Arabian Gulf. Originally found to the south of Manama, the modern metropolis has grown to encircle the ruins. Dominated by two minarets, whose construction is relatively modern, the ruins have been restored and reinforced with concrete. Although the age of the mosque is not known, it was recorded that an inscription once appeared on one of the mosque’s wall dating part of the construction at 740 AH (1339 AD). One sign of the antiquity of the mosque is the use of a ‘Qibla’ wall, which had stones set beside it to indicate the direction of Mecca. In most mosques, the direction of Mecca is indicated by a ‘Mihrab’ or prayer niche in one wall of the mosque. The use of Qibla stones is therefore quite unusual, with the only other mosques known to have Qibla stones being those of Ibn Tulun in Cairo and the Prophet’s Mosque in Medina. Built inside a wall that measured twenty-seven by thirty yards, the mosque was constructed from stones quarried in Bahrain. Built around a central courtyard, the pillars and columns were joined by arches that supported a teak frame, which in turn supported a roof that was probably constructed with brushwood.
Bahrain Banknotes
Bahrain Currency Board
L. 1965 Issue