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Matthew Patay's
Note of the Month
August 2006
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Map and flag images provided by Graphic Maps
This month's featured note
is from Turkmenistan.
The denomination is 50 Manat and the Standard Catalog of World Paper Money
(SCWPM) Number is P-New.
The note is dated 2005 and has not yet received a catalog number.
(front)
The banknote is purple, lavender and green on multicolored underprint.
His Excellency Saparmurat Niyazov (February 19, 1940 - Present), "Turkmenbashi"
President of Turkmenistan and Chairman of the Cabinet of Ministers is at center.
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The following information
was obtained from:
The
TurkmenistanEmbassy.org
Saparmurat Niyazov
(February 19, 1940 - Present)
Saparmurat Niyazov was born on February 19, 1940, into a worker's family in Ashgabat. His father died in battle in World War II and the remaining members of his family perished in Ashgabat’s massive earthquake of 1948. He was raised first in an orphanage and later in the home of his distant relatives.
Mr. Niyazov graduated from the Leningrad Polytechnic Institute in 1966 with a degree in power engineering and began work at the Bezmeinskaya Power Station near Ashgabat.
In 1962 Mr. Niyazov became a member of the Communist Party. In 1985 he was appointed Chairman of the Council of Ministers of Turkmenistan and was subsequently elected First Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Turkmenistan, the highest state and party post. On January 13, 1990, Mr. Niyazov became Chairman of the Supreme Soviet, the supreme legislative body in the republic.
On October 27, 1990, Mr. Niyazov was elected the first president of the Turkmen Soviet Socialist Republic. Under his leadership, on October 27,
1991, Turkmenistan proclaimed its sovereignty from the Soviet Union. In a second presidential election held on June 21, 1991, which was necessitated by the adoption of the new constitution, Mr. Niyazov was elected President of the Republic of Turkmenistan. Mr. Niyazov is also Chairman of the Cabinet of Ministers and Chairman of the Democratic Party of Turkmenistan.
Mr. Niyazov's success as President of Turkmenistan has been attributed to his extensive and productive work in stabilizing the economic situation of the country. He has established Turkmenistan's international prestige and has displayed concern for the people's well-being. Following his election, one of the first resolutions to be adopted was a decree on the free use of water, gas and electricity by the people of Turkmenistan.
As founder and president of the Association of Turkmens of the World, Mr. Niyazov holds the official title of Turkmenbashi, Leader of all Ethnic Turkmens.
Mr. Niyazov was awarded the Magtymguly International Prize for achieving the aim of Magtymguly, the great Turkmen poet and philosopher: the establishment of an independent state of Turkmenistan.
Mr. Niyazov is married and has two children. He is interested in poetry, philosophy, history and music.
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(back)
An Akhalteke Horse is at left center.
The following information
was obtained from:
The
TurkmenistanEmbassy.org
The
Akhalteke Horse of Turkmenistan
The akhalteke is an ancient breed descended from one of the four horse types that crossed the Bering Strait from the Americas in prehistoric times.
Approximately 10,000 years ago, as desertification took hold of Central Asia, the stocky horses indigenous to its steppe grasslands began to evolve into the lean and graceful but hardy horses that inhabit Turkmenistan today. As food and water became more scarce the heavy frame of the horse gave way to a lighter one. Longer necks, a higher head carriage, larger eyes and longer ears evolved to better the horse’s ability to see, smell, and hear predators over the increasingly open plains. The golden coloring predominant among the akhalteke provided the necessary camouflage against the desert landscape. Through natural selection a breed was created which would become the pride of Turkmenistan.
In appearance the akhalteke horse is similar to its descendent, the Persian Arab, though in size it is more comparable to another of its descendants, the English thoroughbred. The akhalteke has a small thin head, long ears and large eyes. It has a short silky mane or no mane at all, and a short tail. The Turkmen practice of covering their horses with two to three layers of felt blankets to protect against cold in the winter and flies in the summer encouraged a remarkably fine textured coat. Akhaltekes are known for their golden coloring but they can also be white, black, dappled, dun, bay, gray or chestnut colored. Fed a low bulk, high protein diet consisting of alfalfa and barely mixed with mutton fat, the akhalteke maintains its traditionally lean proportions of long sinewy legs, a narrow chest, a long back and flat ribs. The average height of an akhalteke is 15 to 15.1 hands. Its small hooves are unusually hard and are therefore rarely shod. The great speed, elasticity and grace of the akhalteke makes it at once a coveted racer, show jumper and dressage mount. Though spirited in temperament, akhaltekes are by all accounts gentle and loyal to their owners, yet aloof with strangers.
Turkmen tribesmen valued their horses above all else. As a nomadic group situated in a crossroads of cultures they were often required to face enemy conflict and came to rely heavily on the strength, speed and endurance of their horses. The akhalteke’s ability to cover great distances of harsh terrain under extreme climatic conditions, and to travel at night, made them indispensable to the Turkmen warriors. Aside from their valiant exertions as warriors’ mounts, akhaltekes were also invaluable in assisting Turkmen nomads with their daily work.
Prior to the Russian occupation of 1917, nearly every Turkmen family owned at least one or two horses. With Bolshevism however, came an end to private ownership and the horses were placed in state-owned stud farms. Rather than surrender their beloved horses to such a fate many tribesmen fled with them to Persia and Afghanistan. When it was then decreed that the horses in the stud farms were to be slaughtered for food, breeders released them into the desert, their natural habitat, thereby preventing what may have resulted in the annihilation of the akhalteke breed within the borders of Turkmenistan. In 1935, fifteen akhaltekes were ridden 3000 kilometers, from Ashgabat to Moscow, in eighty-four days, to demonstrate to Joseph Stalin their formidable strength in the hopes that he would grant his permission for their continued breeding. The campaign was a success.
Upon achieving independence in 1991, the government of Turkmenistan defined horse breeding as a nationalistic concern and an art form. The akhalteke has been declared a national treasure and its image graces the state seal of Turkmenistan. Today private ownership of akhaltekes in Turkmenistan is steadily increasing and there are now akhalteke farms in Germany and the United States.
Famous Akhaltekes:
Absent
Winner of the Prix de Dressage at the 1960 Olympics in Rome. In 1968
Absent was named the “World’s Best Sporting Horse.”
Dancing Brave
Winner of the 1986 Arc de Triomphe Race. Dancing Brave holds the
record for the highest price ever paid for a horse; US$50 million.
Melekush
In 1956 Nikita Krushchev presented Melekush to Queen Elizabeth II of
England. He was described by the Royal Equerry as Britain’s “best
horse.”
Buccephalus
The famed favorite horse of Alexander the Great.
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For more information about Turkmenistan visit:
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