Palestinian pound

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Palestinian pound
‏جنيه فلسطيني‏ (Arabic)
‏ פונט פלשתינאי (א"י) ‏ (Hebrew)
1939 One Palestine Pound
1939 One Palestine Pound
User(s) British Mandate of Palestine, Emirate of Transjordan
Subunit
1/1000 mil
Coins 1, 2, 5, 10, 20, 50, 100 mils
Banknotes 500 mils, 1, 5, 10, 50, 100 pounds
Central bank Palestine currency Board
Printer Thomas De La Rue
This infobox shows the latest status before this currency was rendered obsolete.

The pound (Arabic: جنيه (junyah), Hebrew: פונט) was the currency of the British Mandate of Palestine between 1927 and 1948. It was divided into 1000 mils (Arabic: مل, Hebrew: מיל). The Palestinian pound (called the "Palestine pound" on the banknotes) also served as the currency of Transjordan until 1949 and of the West Bank until 1950. Despite its official name, most Arabic and Hebrew speaking residents of the Mandate referred to it as the lira.[citation needed]

Contents

[edit] History

Until 1918, the region known as Palestine was an integral part of the Ottoman Empire and therefore used Turkish currency. Following the establishment of the British mandate of Palestine, the Egyptian pound circulated until 1927, when the Palestinian pound was introduced, equal in value to the pound sterling. The Palestinian pound was also declared a legal tender in the Transjordan Emirate, which was technically a part of the British Mandate (though having an autonomous local administration). The body which governed the issue of the Palestinian pound was The Palestine Currency Board, which was subject to the British Ministry of the Colonies. The Currency Board was dissolved in May 1948, as the British mandate ended following a UN resolution. The area in which the Palestinian pound circulated was divided into several political entities: the State of Israel, the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, the West Bank and the Gaza Strip.

A 500 mil (½ pound) note issued by the Anglo-Palestine Bank in Tel Aviv in 1948.
A 500 mil (½ pound) note issued by the Anglo-Palestine Bank in Tel Aviv in 1948.

In Israel, there was a transitional period of 4 years between the end of the British Mandate and the adoption of a fully independent currency system. Between 1948 and 1952 the Palestinian pound continued to be a legal tender, however on August 1948 new banknotes were issued by the Anglo Palestine Company (owned by the Jewish Agency and based in London). It was still pegged to the pound sterling, and the currency's name in English and Arabic remained unchanged, though the Hebrew name was changed into "lira Eretz Yisraelit". In 1952 it was replaced by the Israeli lira at par.

In Jordan, the Palestinian pound was replaced at par by the Jordanian dinar in 1949. In 1949, Jordan annexed the West Bank, but the Palestinian pound continued to circulate in this territory until 1950 when it was finally replaced by the Jordanian dinar. The Jordanian dinar is still legal tender in the West Bank along with the Israeli currency.

In the Gaza Strip, the Palestinian pound circulated until April 1951, when it was replaced by the Egyptian pound, three years after the Egyptian army took control of the territory. Today, Gaza Strip inhabitants mostly use the Israeli currency.

In the Oslo Agreements the Palestinian Authority was debarred from issuing its own currency and constrained to remain dependant on the Israeli or Jordanian currencies. However, the Palestinians were able to issue postage stamps and these were valued in terms of the Palestinian Pound, which Palestinian economists and officials declared to be a still-existent (though at present "dormant") currency, to be fully revived with the achievement of Palestinian independence. In practice, almost all debts and prices in the Palestinian territories are currently quoted in Israeli currency, due to the tight economic ties between Israel and the Palestinian territories.

[edit] Coins

In 1927, coins were introduced in denominations of 1, 2, 5, 10, 20, 50 and 100 mils. The 1 and 2 mils were struck in bronze, whilst the 5, 10 and 20 mils were holed, cupro-nickel coins, except for during World War II, when they were also minted in bronze. The 50 and 100 mils coins were struck in .720 silver.

All the denominations were trilingual in Arabic, English and Hebrew (though the Hebrew inscription includes the initials Alef Yud after "Palestina", for "Eretz Yisrael"). The last coins were issued for circulation in 1946, with all 1947 dated coins being melted down.

Palestinian Pound Coinage
Image Value Technical parameters Description Date of first minting
Diameter Mass Composition Edge Obverse Reverse
1 mils 1 mil 21 mm 3.23 g Bronze Plain "Palestine" in Arabic, English, and Hebrew, year of minting Olive sprig, value 1927
2 mils 2 mils 28 mm 7.77 g
5 mils 5 mils 20 mm 2.91 g Cupro-nickel Value
10 mils 27 mm 6.47 g
20 mils 30.5 mm 11.33 g
50 mils 50 mils 23.5 mm 5.83 g 720‰ Silver Reeded "Palestine" in Arabic, English, and Hebrew, year of minting, olive sprig
100 mils 100 mils 29 mm 11.66 g
These images are to scale at 2.5 pixels per millimetre, a Wikipedia standard for world coins. For table standards, see the coin specification table.

[edit] Banknotes

In 1927, banknotes were introduced by the Palestine Currency Board in denominations of 500 mils, 1, 5, 10, 50 and 100 pounds. Notes were issued with dates up to 1945.

Palestinian Pound Banknotes
Image Value Dimensions Main Colour Description Date of first printing Quantity circulated at the end of the Mandate
Obverse Reverse Obverse Reverse Watermark
500 mils 500 mils 127 × 76 mm Purple Rachel's Tomb Citadel and Tower of David Olive sprig 1 September 1927 1,872,811
1 pound obverse 1 pound reverse 1 pound 166 × 89 mm Yellowish green Dome of the Rock 9,413,578
5 pounds 5 pounds 192 × 103 mm Red Tower of Ramla 3,909,230
10 pounds [1] 10 pounds Blue 2,004,128
50 pounds 50 pounds Purple 20,577
100 pounds 100 pounds Green 1,587
These images are to scale at 0.7 pixels per millimetre, a Wikipedia standard for world banknotes. For table standards, see the banknote specification table.

The 100 pound note was equivalent to 40 months wages of a skilled worker in Palestine. Currently six of them are unaccounted for and four are known to exist in the hand of collectors. Their serial numbers and dates are:

[edit] References

[edit] External links