Coins of Australia: Difference between revisions

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{{Short description|Australian currency}}

'''Australian coins''' refers to the [[coins]] which are or were in use as [[Australian dollar|Australian currency]]. During the early days of the colony Australia used foreign currency, until 1910 when Australian coins were introduced. Australia used [[£sd]] of [[Australian pound|pounds]], [[shilling]]s and [[pence]] until 1966 when it adopted decimal system with the Australian dollar.

{{Use dmy dates|date=March 2020}}

{{Use Australian English|date=October 2011}}

The '''coins of Australia''' include the [[coin]]s of the current [[Australian dollar]] and those of other [[currency|currencies]] historically used in the country. During the early days of the colonies that formed Australia, foreign as well as British currency was used, but in 1910, a decade after federation, Australian coins were introduced. Australia used [[£sd|pounds, shillings and pence]] until 1966, when it adopted the decimal system with the Australian dollar divided into 100 cents.

== First coins ==

For many years after the first Australian colony, [[New South Wales]] (NSW), was founded in 1788, it did not have its own currency and had to rely on the coins of other countries. During the early days of the colony, commodities such as wheat were sometimes used as a currency because of the shortage of coins. Also many transactions were carried out using promissory notes or a barter system, which included trafficking in alcohol, known as 'rum currency', a system disbanded when Macquarie became governor on 1 January 1810.

Spanish dollars were sometimes cut into quarters, and then into 2/3 and 1/3 segments, with the 2/3 segments (1/6 of original coin) being "shillings" and the 1/3 segments (1/12 of original coin) "sixpences"<ref>[http://www.australianstamp.com/Coin-web/aust/earlyaus.htm Early Australian Currency] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20051223141758/http://www.australianstamp.com/Coin-web/aust/earlyaus.htm |date=23 December 2005 }}</ref> In 1791 [[Arthur Phillip|Governor Phillip]] of New South Wales fixed the value of the Spanish dollar to equal five shillings.

When Australia was founded in 1788, it did not have its own currency and had to rely on the coins of other countries. During the early days of the colony, [[rum]] was sometimes used as a currency because of the shortage of coins.

Under the decree of 19 November 1800 by the governor [[Philip Gidley King]], the following eleven coins were legal tender for the exchange value of:

Spanish dollars were sometimes cut into 'pieces of eight'; quarters, and then into 2/3 and 1/3 segments, with the 2/3 segments (1/6 of original coin) being 'shillings' and the 1/3 segments (1/12 of original coin) 'sixpences'. [http://www.australianstamp.com/Coin-web/aust/earlyaus.htm] In 1791 Governor Phillip fixed the value of the Spanish Dollar to equal five shillings.

*Gold Johanna (Portugal coin of 12800 [[Portuguese Real|Reis]]) = £4/0/- (four pounds)

*Gold Half Johanna (Portugal coin of 6400 Reis) = £2/0/- (two pounds)

*[[Guinea (British coin)|Guinea]] = £1/2/- (One pound and two shillings)

*Gold [[Mohur]] = £1/17/6 (one pound, 17 shillings and sixpence).

*[[Spanish dollar]] = 5 shillings.

*[[Ducat]] = 9/6 (9 shillings 6 pence).

*[[Rupee]] = 2/6 (2 shillings and 6 pence).

*[[Pagoda (coin)|Pagoda]] = 8/- (8 shillings). .

*[[Dutch Guilder]] = 2/- (2 shillings).

*[[Shilling (British coin)|English shilling]] = 1/1 (1 shilling and 1 penny).

*Copper coin of 1 oz <!--Troy or avoirdupois? {{convert|1|oz|abbr=on}}--> = 2 pence.<ref>Renniks Australian coins and their value 19th edition 2000. page 6.</ref>

The settlers did have some [[George III]] two penceone-penny coins, which were referred to as the "Cartwheel pennypennies". These were the first EnglishBritish coins whichto werebe officially exported to the Australian colonies, and so can be considered Australia's first official coins. They were dated 1797 and 1799, with [[Britannia]] on one side, and King George III on the other.

In 1812, Governor [[Lachlan Macquarie]] boughtof [[SpanishNew dollarSouth Wales]] bought Spanish dollar coins, withfollowing the arrival of the ship ''Samarang'' at Port Jackson with 40,000 Spanish Dollarsdollars, paying four shillings and nine pence for each dollar. He was worried that the coins would quickly be exported out of the colony and had holes cut in the middle of them to try to keep them in Australia. These were known as the [[Holey Dollardollar]]s (valued at 5five shillings), with the piece infrom the middle being called the Dump (valued at around 15 pence). Both were declared legal currency on 30 September 30, 1813. Englishand currencywent becameinto thecirculation officialin currency1814.<ref>[http://www.nma.gov.au/collections/highlights/holey_dollar ofNational Australian colonies after 1825, with almost £100,000Museum of EnglishAustralia coins imported during 1824-5.collection Thehighlights: Holey Dollar was no longer legal tender after 1829.dollar]</ref>

British currency became the official currency of the Australian colonies after 1825, with almost £100,000-worth of British coins being imported during 1824–25. The Holey dollar was no longer legal tender after 1829. The most notable Holey Dollar was the "[[Hannibal Head Holey Dollar|Hannibal Head]]" a one of a kind coin that features the portrait of King [[Joseph Bonaparte|Joseph I]] of Spain. The Hannibal Head sold at auction in 2018 to a private collector for $500,000.<ref>{{Cite web|title=The 1813 Hannibal Head Holey Dollar|url=https://coinworks.com.au/The-1813-Hannibal-Head-Holey-Dollar~15400|access-date=2022-01-05|website=coinworks.com.au}}</ref>

Unofficial gold coins were used during the [[gold rush]] during the 1850s. Traders tokens were also used with the shortage in coins caused by the large increase in population. Attempts to make gold coins in Adelaide in 1852 failed because of the discovery of a die-crack. Australia's first official mint was in Sydney, founded in 1855. It produced gold coins with an original design between 1855 and 1870 with "Sydney Mint, Australia, One Sovereign" on one side and Queen Victoria on the other, before in 1870 minting gold coins of British design.

==Gold coins and Sovereigns==

== Australian £sd ==

[[File:Australia 1857 Sovereign (proof).jpg|thumb|250px|Australia 1857 Sovereign (proof)]]

[[Image:Australian pre decimal coins penny shilling.jpg|thumb|300px|Australian shilling, penny and half penny]]

Unofficial gold coins were used during the [[Victorian gold rush|gold rush of the 1850s]]. Traders' [[token coin|token]]s were also used because of the shortage of coins caused by the large increase in population. Requests to make gold coins in Adelaide in 1852 to compensate for the shortage of coins were rejected by Britain after 25,000 One Pound pieces were struck.<ref>{{cite web | title=One Pound Type I Adelaide Assay Office | website=www.bluesheet.com.au | date= | url=http://www.bluesheet.com.au/Australia/Gold/Adelaide_Assay_Office/One_Pound/Type_I/ | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110220190604/http://www.bluesheet.com.au/Australia/Gold/Adelaide_Assay_Office/One_Pound/Type_I/ | archive-date=February 20, 2011 | url-status=dead }}</ref>

Australia's first official mint was in Sydney, founded in 1855. It produced gold coins with an original design between 1855 and 1870, with "Sydney Mint, Australia, One Sovereign" on one side and Queen Victoria on the other, or "Sydney Mint, Australia, Half Sovereign", before starting in 1870 to mint gold coins of British design. One gold sovereign equalled £1.

In 1898 the British government allowed [[New South Wales]] and [[Victoria (Australia)|Victoria]] to mint silver and bronze coins at the mints in Melbourne and Sydney. British coins continued in use after [[Federation]] until 1910, when Australian silver coins were introduced. These included florins, shillings, sixpence and threepence. They had a portrait of King Edward on one side. Australian Pennies and half-pennies were introduced into circulation the following year. In 1931 gold sovereigns were stopped being minted in Australia. A [[crown]] or five-shilling coin was minted in 1937 and 1938.

==The pound==

== Decimal currency ==

{{main|Coins of the Australian pound}}

[[Image:1966 australian 50 cent piece circular.jpg|thumb|The unusual circular 1966 50 cent piece]]

Federation in 1901 gave the Commonwealth [[Section 51(xii) of the Australian Constitution|a constitutional power]] to issue coins and removed this power from the States. British coins continued in use until 1910, when Australian silver coins were introduced. These included florins, shillings, sixpences and threepences. They had a portrait of King Edward VII on one side. Australian pennies and half-pennies were introduced into circulation the following year. In 1931 gold sovereigns stopped being minted in Australia. A [[Crown (British coin)|crown]] or five-shilling coin was minted in 1937 and 1938.

On 14 February 1966 Decimal coins were introduced. The old pound was equal to two dollars. All coins portray Queen Elizabeth II on the obverse and are produced by the [[Royal Australian Mint]]. This included the 50 cent, 20 cent, 10 cent and 5 cent piece, referred to as 'silver' but actually 75% [[copper]] and 25% [[nickel]], as well as the 'bronze' 2 cent and 1 cent piece. The 50 cent piece was originally made circular in 1966, but because the silver in the coin was worth more than 50 cents, it was changed to a 12 sided shape for 1967 and all following years.

==The dollar==

A 'gold' two dollar and one dollar coin were introduced in the late 1980s. The $1 coin was introduced in 1984, which would replace the $1 banknote. The $2 coin to replace the $2 note was introduced in 1988. These have content of 2% nickel, 6% [[aluminium]] and 92% copper. Thus all Australian coins in use currently are composed of more than half of copper. The one- and two-cent coins were discontinued in 1990&ndash;92 and withdrawn from circulation.

[[File:ABC Decimal Currency.ogv|thumb|right|'Design of the new decimal currency' first broadcast by the ABC in 1964]]

{{main|Coins of the Australian dollar}}

The [[Australian dollar]] replaced the [[Australian pound]] on 14 February 1966 as part of the [[decimalisation]] process.<ref name=DollarBill>{{citation|url=http://blog.perthmint.com.au/2012/02/14/on-this-day-australia-goes-decimal/|title=ON THIS DAY: Australia goes decimal|date=14 February 2012|work=The Perth Mint Coin Collector|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20130511022234/http://blog.perthmint.com.au/2012/02/14/on-this-day-australia-goes-decimal/|archivedate=11 May 2013|quote=On this day, 14th February 1966, Australia introduced decimal notes and coins, marking the end of its British-style currency system based on pounds, shillings and pence.}}</ref> At this time, 1, 2, 5, 10, 20, and 50 cent coins were issued.<ref name=DollarBill/> $1 coins were first issued in 1984,<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.canberratimes.com.au/entertainment/look-at-the-big-picture-20140226-33i9g.html|first=Ron|last=Cerabona|date=27 February 2014|newspaper=[[The Canberra Times]]|title=Look at the big picture|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20140308032333/http://www.canberratimes.com.au/entertainment/look-at-the-big-picture-20140226-33i9g.html|archivedate=8 March 2014}}</ref> and $2 coins soon followed in 1988. The one- and two-cent coins were discontinued in 1990 and withdrawn from circulation in February&nbsp;1992.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nowtoronto.com/daily/story.cfm?content=191052|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20130208191431/http://www.nowtoronto.com/daily/story.cfm?content=191052|archivedate=8 February 2013|url-status=dead|title=The dingo ate my penny: Scenes from Australia's elimination of the one-cent coint|date=5 February 2013|newspaper=[[Now (newspaper)|Now]]|author=Jonathan Goldsbie}}</ref>

==See also==

{{Portal|Australia|Money|Numismatics}}

* [[List of people who have appeared on Australian currency]]

* [[Banknotes of the Australian dollar]]

* [[Banknotes of the Australian pound]]

== References ==

{{reflist}}

{| border = 1 rules = rows rules = columns

{{refbegin}}

|-

*{{numis cite SCWC | date=2004}}

| colspan = 5 align = center | '''Australian coins''' [http://www.ramint.gov.au/making_coins/default.cfm?DefaultPage=coin_designs.cfm]

{{refend}}

|-

{{commonscat|Coins of Australia}}

| '''Value'''

| '''Composition'''

| '''Design'''

| '''Mass'''

| '''Diameter'''

|- bgcolor=#f9f9f9

| 1 cent <small>(no longer used)</small>

|

| [[Sugar Glider]]

|

|

|- bgcolor=#f9f9f9

| 2 cents <small>(no longer used)</small>

|

| [[Frill-necked Lizard]]

|

|

|- bgcolor=#f9f9f9

| 5 cents

| 75% [[copper]], 25% [[nickel]]

| [[Echidna]]

| 2.83 [[gram|g]]

| 19.41 [[meter|mm]]

|- bgcolor=#f9f9f9

| 10 cents

| 75% copper, 25% nickel

| [[Lyrebird]]

| 5.65 g

| 23.60 mm

|- bgcolor=#f9f9f9

| 20 cents

| 75% copper, 25% nickel

| [[Platypus]]

| 11.30 g

| 28.52 mm

|- bgcolor=#f9f9f9

| 50 cents

| 75% copper, 25% nickel

| [[Coat of Arms of Australia|Australian coat of arms]] - Dodecagonal

| 15.55 g

| 31.51 mm

|- bgcolor=#f9f9f9

| 1 dollar

| 92% copper, 6% [[aluminium]], 2% nickel (gold-coloured)

| Five [[kangaroo]]s

| 9.00 g

| 25.00 mm

|- bgcolor=#f9f9f9

| 2 dollars

| 92% copper, 6% aluminium, 2% nickel (gold-coloured)

| Aboriginal elder

| 6.60 g

| 20.50 mm

|}

<gallery>

Image:Australian 5 cent piece Scan.jpg|5c

Image:Lyrebird-on-reverse-of-Australian-10-cent-coin.jpg|10c

Image:Oz20cent.jpg|20c

Image:Aus coins queen elizabeth 1966.jpg|[[Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom|Queen Elizabeth II]] on 1966 coins

</gallery>

== Commemorative coins ==

Many special coins have been produced with an event replacing the usual design on one side of the coin. For some years, all the coins are replaced with a different design for that year. In other cases, only a few coins have the new design, which are released as special commemorative coins, although many usually end up in circulation. Because of their larger size, it is usually the 50c, 20c and $1 which have new designs; the $2, 10c and 5c are rarely changed. The commemorative coins include:

*1982. 50c "XII Commonwealth games brisbane"

*1988. 50c "Australia 1788-1988"

*1993. $1 "Landcare Australia"

*1995. 50c "'Weary' Dunlop"

*1997. $1 "Sir Charles Kingsford Smith"

*1999. $1 "International year of older persons"

*2000. 50c "Royal Visit 2000"; 50c "Millenium Year"

*2001. 50c, 20c "Centenary of Federation" with separate coins for each state as well as Australia; $1 "International Year of Volunteers"

*2002. 50c windmill design, $1 "Year of the Outback"

*2003. 50c "Australia's volunteers", $1 "Centenary of Women's suffrage"

*2004. 50c with wombat, koala and bird.

*2005. 50c "1939-1945 rememberance"

== External links ==

*[https://www.coinsandaustralia.com/ Australian coins price guide and values]

*[http://www.triton.vg/ozcoins.html guide to predecimal coins]

*[httphttps://www.downiesramint.com/australian_coinsgov.htmau/coin-types Coin Types history| ofRoyal Australian coinsMint]

*[https://bluesheet.com.au Australian Coin Values | Blue Sheet]

*[http://www.cruzis-coins.com/ Cruzi's Coins] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210422143214/http://www.cruzis-coins.com/ |date=22 April 2021 }}

*[http://www.triton.vg/ozcoins.html Guide to predecimal coins]

*[https://web.archive.org/web/20060222120251/http://www.downies.com/australian_coins.htm History of Australian coins]

*[https://web.archive.org/web/20081112055603/http://www.australianstamp.com/Coin-web/aust/Aust.htm The Currency of Australia]

*[http://www.coinpage.com/Australia-coin-pictures.html Australia Coin pictures]

*[https://web.archive.org/web/20090209060509/http://www.aussie-coins.com/ Australian Coins]

*[https://onlinecoin.club/Coins/Country/Australia/ Coins from Australia – Online Coin Club]

{{Australian currency}}

== See also ==

{{Economy of Australia}}

*[[Australian dollar]]

*[[Australian pound]]

{{DEFAULTSORT:Coins of Australia}}

[[Category:Coins]]

[[Category:EconomyCoins of Australia| ]]

[[Category:Articles containing video clips]]