Turkmenistan Manat Banknotes

Once a republic in the former Soviet Union, the independent country of TURKMENISTAN is at the heart of Western Asia, fortunate to have the world's largest inland water body (Caspian Sea)* to its west. Afghanistan, Iran, Kazakhstan, and Uzbekistan border Turkmenistan.
* The Black Sea is larger in area, but is not completely inland because it is connected to the Mediterranean Sea.

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The Turkmenistani Manat (1 Manat = 100 Tenge/Teňňe) is Turkmenistan's currency, consisting of vibrant banknotes, valuable commemorative coins, and cartographic circulation coins (cartographic because several denominations have a map of Turkmenistan). The 5 Manat (Bäş Manat) banknote at the top left is even more boldly blue in real life; the scanned image above does not truly give its color justice! This banknote is not dated but was first printed in 1993 after Turkmenistan dissolved from the Soviet Union to form its own country. The top right banknote is the 20 Manat (Ұigrimi Manat), dated 1995.
What's on the Money?
Both banknotes blend modern and ancient architecture. The top building on the 5 Manat in the image above is called Sazcylyk Okuw Jayy, accompanied by a Parthian rhyton horn. The bottom building is Abu Seyidiñ Yadygärligi, the mausoleum of a well-respected religious person: Abu-Said Mitkhene. The top building on the 20 Manat above is the Milli Kitaphana (National Library of Turkmenistan), which is placed behind Turkmenistan's first president: Saparmurat Niyazov. The 20 Manat's bottom building is the Astanababa Yadygärligi, another mausoleum. Both banknotes feature Turkmenistan's previous national emblem; this circular element is now within the eight-point star of the current emblem.