Australia

Quentin Christensen, WINS#920

Australia’s general numismatic history is short, dating back to the first European settlers in 1788. The indigenous population bartered with each other, though there are records of using shells as a primitive currency in areas.

The "First Fleet" in 1788 brought various currencies. These were accepted as available, although more often barter was used. Rum was an unofficial currency, to the point where the government tried, and failed, to regulate it.

Each state ran as an independent colony, so there was no official "Australian" currency before federation in 1901. The 1813 "Holey Dollar" and "Dump" are regarded as the first "Australian" currency. In December 1812 the governor of NSW received a shipment of 40,000 Spanish dollars. Along with these came instructions to prevent the currency from leaving the country. A convicted forger, William Henshall was employed to cut the centres out of the coins and counterstamp each piece. The central plug, or “dump” was given the value of 15 pence (1 Shilling, 3 Pence). The “holey dollars” were given the value of 5 Shillings. The combined value of a holey dollar and dump was 25% more than a Spanish dollar, making them unprofitable to export again.

In 1825 an imperial order was given to introduce sterling currency in all British colonies. As a result, most holey dollars and dumps were withdrawn and melted down, with roughly 350 holey dollars and 1500 dumps believed to exist today.

Various local tokens and particularly banknotes were issued unofficially. Most of these are fairly rare today. With the gold rush of the mid-1800’s, Gold sovereigns were minted from 1855. The first 1855 Sydney issue is now highly sought after.

Following federation, in 1910, Australia finally got its own official currency. The Australian Pound was fixed to the British Pound. Bronze denominations consisted of the halfpenny and penny. Silver coins were the threepence, sixpence, shilling and florin. Initially the silver coins were .926 silver. In 1946, the silver content was reduced to 0.500.

Coin design and size copied British coinage. As continues today, all coins have the head of the monarch on the obverse. The initial silver coins all had the Australian coat of arms on the reverse. In 1938 the reverse designs were updated and modernised. A Kangaroo graced the new bronze coins, the threepence had three wheat stalks and the shilling got a ram’s head. The sixpence and florin retained an updated coat of arms. Several circulating commemorative issue florins were released over the years.

In 1936, a “Crown” was planned to celebrate the ascension of King Edward VIII. With his abdication in December of that year, these coins were instead released for George VI. They were large and cumbersome and not overly popular. 1 million crowns were minted in 1937 and only 100,000 were released in 1938. The second year, as expected, is the more valuable today. No circulation coins bore King Edward VIII's name, although several patterns were produced.

The 1930 penny is probably the most well-known Australian rarity. Not intended to be released, it is estimated around 1,200 examples exist, which can sell for up to $45,000. The 1920 square penny pattern probably comes second in popularity.

During WW2, many US troops were based in Australia. Coin production was increased to ensure they could all be paid. As a result, there were a lot of coins circulating after the war when they went home. Coin production dropped, making several postwar issues, such as the 1946 halfpenny scarce.

Banknotes were issued in 5 and 10 shillings and 1, 5 and 10 pounds. 20, 50 and 100-pound notes were issued in 1914, though not regularly after that. A 1,000-pound note was also issued in 1914, of which no uncancelled specimens are known to exist. A cancelled example sold in 2007 for $1.2 million.

In 1964, production of currency was halted in preparation for the switch to decimal. On the 14th of February 1966 decimal currency was introduced in Australia. The initial decimal values were 1, 2, 5, 10, 20 and 50 cent coins, and $1, $2, $5, $10 and $20 paper notes. In 1973, the $50 note entered circulation. In 1984 the $1 note changed to a coin and the $100 note was introduced. In 1988 the $2 coin entered circulation, and in 1991, withdrawal commenced of 1 and 2c coins. Prices in shops are still listed in cents (eg $7.99). If paying cash, the final total cost is rounded up or down to the nearest 5c. If payment is electronic or by credit card, the listed price is paid.

In 1988 a new series of polymer banknotes started to be released, to replace the paper notes. The full range of denominations was not completely rolled out until 1996. The first note released was a commemorative note celebrating the Australian bicentennary.

In 2016, a new $5 was released, the first of a new series, with the new $10 released in September 2017. A new $50 note is due out in 2018 with the remainder due over the following years. The new notes are similar colours and sizes to the old notes, with new features. They have a strip of clear polymer in one section, new holograms, and tactile dots to assist the blind.

The standard circulating design of decimal coins has been largely unchanged. The 1966 50c piece generally sells much higher than face value. After its introduction, it was found to be easily confused for the 20c as it was a similar size. As a result, no 50c pieces were produced in 1967 or 1968 and when reintroduced in 1969, it was dodecagonal (12 sided). As the largest coin, with a diameter of 31.65mm, the 50c piece has been a popular coin for circulating commemorative designs. There have been 29 different commemorative reverse designs on the 50c piece. Since the introduction of the $1 coin, it has had over 20 commemorative designs. The $2 coin has had 9 commemorative reverse designs, with 8 of them coloured. This has led to a legal dispute, with the Royal Canadian Mint suing the Royal Australian mint over the 2012 Remembrance Day red poppy. Between the legal action seeking their withdrawal, and their scarcity to begin with, these coins can fetch over $40.

There have been four effigies of Queen Elizabeth II on Australian decimal coins. A 5th design was used for the 2000 50c coin to commemorate the Royal Visit that year. From 2019, a new effigy will be introduced. To celebrate 50 years of decimal coins in 2016, a series of coins was minted, with the standard reverse, but a modified obverse. This was the first time such a change had been made in Australia, and to all denominations. Each coin featured a smaller effigy of the queen, above a circle with the image of one of the pre-decimal coins. Those coins can be harder to find in circulation.

Other notably small mintage coins worth looking out for are: