The Iraqi dinar (pronounced: di-‘nr) is the legal currency of Iraq.
Old Iraqi dinar
The Iraqi dinar was introduced into circulation in 1931 and was at par with the Pound sterling. The Iraqi dinar replaced the Indian rupee that was the official currency at the time of the British occupation in World War I. After the 1958 coup d’etat, the Iraqi dinar was dissociated from the Pound sterling, but continued to have a very high value.
After the Gulf War in 1991 and due to the economic blockade and unrestricted printing of banknotes by the government, the dinar devalued fast, and in late 1995, $1 equaled 3000 dinars.
Banknotes issued between 1990 and October 2003, along with a 25-dinar note issued in 1986, bear an idealized engraving of former Iraqi President Saddam Hussein. Following the 1991 Gulf War, Iraq’s currency was printed using poor grade wood pulp paper (rather than cotton or linen) and inferior quality lithography.
Counterfeited banknotes often appeared to be of better quality than real notes. Despite the collapse in the value of the Iraqi dinar, the highest denomination printed until 2002 was 250 dinars.
Currency...