Gambian pound these were minted by the Royal Mint in denominations of 1, 3 and 6 pence, 1, 2 and 4 shillings, with 8 shillings added in 1970. All coins had Queen Elizabeth II's portrait on the obverse. The 8 Shillings coin of the Gambia is the only example of this denomination ever minted. With the exception of the Hippopotamus, the reverse designs of the pre-decimal coins were reused on the Gambia's decimal coins. On October 5, 1964, new banknotes were introduced by the Gambia Currency Board in denominations of 10 shillings, 1 and 5 pounds. All notes had a sailing boat
British currency in the Middle East British colonies, including Hong Kong from 1863 to 1866; and the British Palestine Mandate from 1926 until 1948. The Palestinian example may in fact have been the impetus to use a pound-mil system in Cyprus as the Palestinian pound was for a brief period accepted as legal tender in Cyprus. Although Cyprus gained independence from Britain in 1960, the Cyprus pound remained pegged to the pound sterling until 1972. The origins of the Egyptian pound date from 1834, when a Khedival Decree was issued providing for the issuing of an Egyptian currency based on a bimetallic base, i.e.: based on