2017 AUSTRALIAN HIGH-RELIEF SILVER COIN SERIES

The Royal Australian Mint have debuted (3rd February) the first in a new coin series that introduces Australia’s original decimal coin designs in a new, high-relief set of 1-ounce silver coins. The designs were originally part of a set of coins introduced in 1966, which brought the country’s currency from that of pounds, shillings, and pence to a decimal system consisting of 100 cents to one new Australian dollar. The new system saw two new Australian dollars equaling one old pound, with three coins in circulation during the previous currency system transitioning into new cent values.

The 2-shilling coin was issued as a new 20-cent coin; the old shilling coin became a new 10-cent coin; and the old 6-pence or half-shilling coin was now a new 5-cent coin. This change in currency system also enabled the Royal Australian Mint—which itself was inaugurated the year before decimalisation in order to fulfill the need for new Australian coins—to also remove the silver content from circulation coins (with the exception of a new 50-cent coin, which was minted with a fineness of 80% fine silver). The 1966 decimal-coin designs were created by eminent artist and silversmith Stuart Devlin and reflected the many diverse animals found on the continent. The series consisted of the six new denominations, from the new 1 cent to 50 cents, and included the effigy created by Arnold Machin, today considered one of the most widely recognised portraits of Queen Elizabeth II ever used on coinage.

The first coin in the new, 2017 series is a piedfort (double-thickness) coin produced using a high-relief striking process. The design re-creates that on the 1966 1-cent coin: the feather-tailed glider, also known as the pygmy gliding possum. With its distinctive, big eyes and brownish fur, this little marsupial measures just 6.5 to 8 centimetres (2.6 to 3.1 inches) from nose to rump and weighs about 12 grams (0.42 ounce), making it about the size of a small mouse. It is the world’s smallest gliding mammal. This species native to eastern Australia and is named for its long, featherlike tail (click here and use the magnifier tool for a close look). The 1-cent coin was eventually removed from circulation in 1991, after 25 years in use.

To read the complete article, see:
Australia: Decimal designs in perspective on new high-relief silver coin series (http://news.coinupdate.com/australia-decimal-designs-in-perspective-on-new-high-relief-silver-coin-series/)

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