2019-12-09 Mon

Swaziland, recently renamed as Kingdom of Eswatini in 2018, is a small, landlocked monarchy in southern Africa. It is known for its wilderness reserves and festivals showcasing traditional Swazi culture. Marking its northeastern border with Mozambique and stretching down to South Africa, the Lebombo Mountains are a backdrop for Mlawula Nature Reserve’s many hiking trails. Nearby Hlane Royal National Park is home to diverse wildlife including lions, hippos and elephants.

Swaziland was under Great Britain for more than 60 years, until they got independence in 1968. The name change happened on the 50th anniversary of independence from Britain and the king’s 50th birthday. The king announced that African countries started using their original ancient names after independence and that Swaziland will be now officially known as the Kingdom of eSwatini.

The Swaziland Lilangeni (singular, emalangeni: plural) is the national currency of the Kingdom of eSwatini. It is subdivided into 100 cents and issued by the Central Bank of Swaziland (renamed as Central bank of Eswatini).

Today we are discussing a 2 emalangeni banknote issued in 1987. The obverse has the portrait of King Mswati III to left; the Parliament building in Lobamb and the Parliament building in Lobamba to right centre. Below the portrait is the Coat of Arms depicting a lion (as a symbol for the King) and an elephant (as a symbol for the Queen) along with shield and spears in centre with denomination written on it.

The reverse depicts the Fauna of Swaziland: Grey Lourie; Blue Crane; Hippopotamuse; Zebras; a Giraffe; a Butterfly, etc. This multi-coloured note has the Swazi Shield (Coat of Arms) as its watermark.

Image Courtesy: Roberts World Money