Bahrain Banknotes Half Dinar bank note 1979 Bahrain Monetary Agency
Obverse: On the front of the note, the title of the new issuing authority appears at the top - Bahrain Monetary Agency, the crest of the Ruler of Bahrain appears to the right, a dhow under full sail appears in the centre, while at the left there are three features. The most dominant of the three features is a map of the Bahrain archipelago, to the left of which appears a vignette of a minaret of the al Fadhel mosque, while to the right is disc displaying the points of the compass, surmounted by a device showing North. The ½-dinar note has a bull’s head as the minor vignette on its front. The small bull’s head was found in the excavations of a temple complex near Barbar. Estimated to have been created around 2500 BC, the copper bull’s head was found with many other items in the tank of the temple, a temple belonging to the ancient civilization of Dilmun.
Reverse: The back of the ½-dinar note bears an illustration of the smelting house of Aluminium Bahrain. Aluminium Bahrain, or ALBA as it is more commonly known, is one of the earlier initiatives of the Bahrain Development Bureau, which was established to facilitate investment and employment in Bahrain. ALBA was established by a consortium of British, Swedish, French and United States companies and the Government of Bahrain. The first production of aluminium was poured by the Amir, Sheikh Isa bin Salman al Khalifa in May 1971. The £40 million smelter built for ALBA was designed to produce 90,000 tonnes of aluminium a year. After many years of progress and development the plant now produces 460,000 tonnes a year.
Bahrain banknotes - Bahrain paper money
Bahrain Monetary Agency - L. 1979 "Arms" Issue