500 Tögrög Steppe Eagle

Issued under Mongolia's broader 1990s wildlife conservation series, which the Bank of Mongolia used partly to generate hard currency through collector sales abroad — a common strategy among post-Soviet states navigating the transition away from centrally planned economies. The steppe eagle (Aquila nipalensis) ranges across Central Asia into the Russian steppe and was a deliberate choice, reflecting both national fauna and the nomadic cultural significance of raptors in Mongolian tradition.

KM#132 is a relatively low-mintage proof issue with limited secondary market depth.