10 Riyals 1973, Qatar
| in Krause book | Number: 3 |
| Years of issue: | 19.05.1973 |
| Edition: | |
| Signatures: | The Minister of Finance: Abdelaziz bin Khalifa Al Thani (in office 1973-1991) |
| Serie: | 1973 Issue |
| Specimen of: | 1973 |
| Material: | Cotton fiber |
| Size (mm): | 151 x 66 |
| Printer: | Bradbury, Wilkinson & Company Limited Engravers, London |
* All pictures marked 
are increased partially by magnifying glass, the remaining open in full size by clicking on the image.
** The word "Specimen" is present only on some of electronic pictures, in accordance with banknote images publication rules of appropriate banks.
Description
Watermark:
The falcon.
The saker falcon (Falco cherrug). This bird has a great emotional significance for the indigenous population.
There is an opinion, that the national bird of the United Arab Emirates and Qatar is not the Saker, but its hunting hybrid with Gyrfalcon (Falco rusticolus). However - The first successful results of obtaining a hybrid of gyrfalcon and saker were obtained in the early 1970s in Ireland, that is, when the national bird of the UAE was already identified and there were already circulating banknotes with the image of Saker Falcon. Today - indeed, this hybrid is popular in falconry in many countries, including the OAE and Qatar.
The saker falcon (Falco cherrug) is a large species of falcon. This species breeds from eastern Europe eastwards across Asia to Manchuria. It is mainly migratory except in the southernmost parts of its range, wintering in Ethiopia, the Arabian peninsula, northern Pakistan and western China.
The specific part of the scientific name, cherrug, comes from the Hindi name charg for a female saker. The common name saker comes from the (Arabic: صقر, translit. Ṣaqr) meaning "falcon". 
Avers:
On right side is the coat of arms of Qatar.
The emblem of Qatar (Arabic: شعار قطر) is the coat of arms of Qatar.
The emblem shows two crossed white curved swords in a yellow circle. Between the swords there is a sailing ship (dhow) sailing on blue and white waves beside an island with two palm trees. The circle is surrounded by a round doughnut-shaped object, which is divided horizontally, between the two colours of the flag. In the white section, the name of the state of Qatar is written in black, while in the maroon section, the country’s official name is written in white of Qatar.
Across the field of banknotes, on top, is a pattern in the Islamic style, and a column with arches. Where is this column and pattern located, in Qatar, I did not found yet.
Revers:
Central Bank of Qatar building in Doha. It have 11 stores. Hight - 45,96 meters.
Address: Qatar Central Bank Building, Abdullah Bin Jassim Street, Al Corniche Area, 1234, Qatar.
Comments:
The first bank notes issued by The Qatar Monetary Agency were released into circulation on 19 May 1973. Printed by the British security printers Bradbury Wilkinson and Company, the issue contained five denominations: 1, 5, 10, 100 and 500 riyals.
The new notes were exchanged at par for the Riyals of the Qatar and Dubai Currency Board. The notes of the new and the old issuing authorities circulated concurrently for a ninety day period, after which all notes issued by the Qatar and Dubai Currency Board were withdrawn from circulation. The old notes were then then redeemable only through The Qatar Monetary Agency (and later through the Qatar Central Bank). However, under Decree No. 69 of 1993, the deadline for the exchange of currency issued by the Qatar and Dubai Currency Board was 30 June 1994.
The new notes issued by The Qatar Monetary Agency carry a patterned front that always contains the State Crest of Qatar in a vignette to the right and a plain area for viewing the watermark to the left. In the top centre of each note is the title of the Qatar Monetary Agency, while immediately below is the denomination and the promissory clause, which are all written in Arabic. The promissory clause reads: ‘A bank note of guaranteed value according to law’. The denomination appears in each corner of the note in Arabic numerals. The notes are signed by Abdulaziz al-Thani, the Minister of Finance.
Although the patterns on the front of each note are similar in style, each pattern is quite distinct and the colours are also different. The back of each note carries an illustration, around which is a pattern that also encloses the pale area reserved for viewing the watermark. The title of the issuing authority and the denomination are written in English, while the denomination appears several times in western numerals.
The serial numbers on all notes of the first issue consist of a fractional serial number prefix followed by six numerals. The serial number prefix has the Arabic letter alif, the first letter of the alphabet, over a number. Each note carries a solid security thread and the head of a falcon as the watermark.
Fluorescent ink is used on each denomination in varying manners. The 1-, 5- and 10-riyal notes have a narrow strip of fluorescent ink along the left-hand edge of the notes. Invisible in normal light, the strip glows yellow when the note is submitted to ultra-violet light. For the 100- and 500-riyal notes, a fluorescent security device is used. The device is the State Crest of Qatar, and it is located towards the bottom of the note below the signature, becoming apparent only when the note is submitted to ultra-violet light.
In 1976, three years after the initial issue, the Qatar Monetary Agency introduced a 50-riyal note. The new note is designed in the same style as the other notes in the series. However, while the 50-riyal note has inks in the design that fluoresce, it does not have a specific fluorescent feature. It is at this stage that the possibility of varieties for some of the other denominations arises. The 100-riyal note is known to be issued with the fluorescent feature of the State Crest of Qatar (as described above). However, it has also been seen without this feature, but with patch of silver ink under the State Crest that only becomes apparent when the note is submitted to ultra-violet light. It is probable that stocks of several denominations, if not all, were supplemented by a second print run at the time that the 50-riyal note was introduced. It is possible that these notes had different fluorescent features to those of the first print run. Unfortunately, an insufficient sample of notes has been seen to draw any definite conclusions on this matter. (Peter Symes. The Bank Notes of Qatar)
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