Soldiers with the national flag of Eritrea and date 1991 (not an issue date) are symbolizing the struggle for independence from Ethiopia.

The Eritrean War of Independence was a conflict fought between the Ethiopian government and Eritrean separatists, both before and during the Ethiopian Civil War. The war started when Eritrea's autonomy within Ethiopia, where troops were already stationed, was revoked.

Eritrea had become part of Ethiopia after World War II, when both territories were liberated from Italian occupation. The war went on for 30 years until 1991, when the Eritrean People's Liberation Front (EPLF) defeated the Ethiopian forces in Eritrea, and the Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF), with the help of the EPLF, took control of Ethiopia and removed the Marxist–Leninist People's Democratic Republic of Ethiopia (PDRE) from the Ethiopian capital of Addis Ababa.

African elephant and calf left, divide denomination. Date on right.

The African bush elephant (Loxodonta africana), also known as the African savanna elephant, is the largest elephant of the animal kingdom. It can weigh from 8,800 to 15,400 pounds, making it the heaviest terrestrial mammal species. On average, males are 3.2 meters (10.5 ft) tall at the shoulder and 6 tons (6.6 short tons) in weight, while females are relatively smaller at 2.6 meters (8.5 ft) tall at the shoulder and 3 tons (3.3 short tons) in weight. Elephants attain their maximum stature when they complete the fusion of long-bone epiphyses, occurring in males around the age of 40 and females around the age of 25. Their large size means that they must consume around 50 gallons of water everyday in order to stay hydrated. These elephants are known for being hunted for their tusks, ears, feet, and meat, so the population of bush elephants in the world have been increasingly declining.