The rial is the currency of Oman. It is divided into 1000 baisa (also written baiza, Arabic: بيسة).
Before 1940, the Indian rupee and the Maria Theresa Thaler (known locally as the rial) were the main currencies circulating in Muscat and Oman, as the state was then known, with rupees circulating on the coast and Thaler in the interior.
The Indian rupee and, from 1959, the Gulf rupee continued to circulate until 1970, when the rial Saidi (not to be confused with Saudi riyal) was made the currency of Oman. It was equal to the British pound and replaced the Gulf rupee at a rate of approximately 21 rupees to the rial. The new rial was subdivided into 1000 baisa. The rial Omani replaced the rial Saidi at par in 1973. The currency name was altered due to the regime change in 1970 and the subsequent change of the country's name.
Obverse: Sultan Qaboos bin Said al Said;
irrigation canal
Reverse: Verreaux eagle, white oryx
Thanks to a trader from Chatuchak Market, Bangkok, Thailand.
