With Queen Elizabeth II being the darling of the numismatic world for sheer ubiquity, the news that she is about to become the longest serving monarch in British history was obviously going to be commemorated on lots of different coins. We’ll be covering ones from the Royal Canadian Mint, the Royal Mint, the Royal Australian Mint and the Perth Mint, amongst others, in the next few days, but we’re kicking off with undoubtably the most unique of them all, a rotating coin from the New Zealand Post.
The coin consists of an outer ring of nickel plated zinc alloy weighing around two ounces (62g) and standing at 59mm in diameter. Sitting in the centre of this ring is an encapsulated fine silver coin of one ounce (31.1g) in weight and 40mm in diameter that can spin around its axis. The obverse of the coin carries the usual effigy of Queen Elizabeth II by Ian Rank Broadley, the new effigy by Jody Clark being limited to Royal Mint releases at present. The reverse side carries the first effigy of Elizabeth II from 1953, a beautiful work by Mary Gillick, which like the effigy on the obverse, has been selectively gilded.
The coin has been struck by industry leaders, BH Mayer Kunstprageanstatlt in Germany and is nicely packaged in a small frame that allows you to spin the coin while in it. It will sell for $149 NZD and be up on the New Zealand Post website shortly. Early indicators are that the coin will be a brisk seller.
MINTS DESCRIPTION
On 9 September 2015, Queen Elizabeth II will succeed Queen Victoria as the longest reigning British monarch. To celebrate this amazing milestone, New Zealand Post is issuing a special set of stamps and a coin that celebrate Queen Elizabeth II as New Zealand’s longest reigning monarch.
As New Zealand did not become part of the British Empire until three years after Victoria’s accession to the throne in 1837, Queen Elizabeth II has been New Zealand’s longest-reigning monarch for some time. Queen Elizabeth II is the only ‘Queen of New Zealand’ we’ve ever known, as during Queen Victoria’s reign New Zealand was a British colony rather than a Realm. On 28 May 1953, Her Majesty formally became ‘The Queen of New Zealand’ – the fist Sovereign to hold this title.
During her reign Queen Elizabeth II has maintained close links to New Zealand, and has visited ten times since her inaugural tour in 1953/54. Although her last visit was in 2002, we still maintain a strong bond with the monarchy, with more recent visits made on her behalf by William and Catherine, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, who last visited in 2014 along with their son Prince George of Cambridge.
Commemorate Her Majesty’s milestone with the world’s first rotating coin To mark this historic occasion we’ve created the world’s first rotating coin! This special coin is made up of two parts: a 1oz silver proof inner section, and a non-precious-metal outer rim. Innovatively crafted, the silver proof inner section rotates inside the outer rim, resulting in a coin experience never seen before.
Officially approved by Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth II, the inner section of the coin features the Queen’s first and current New Zealand effigies in stunning gold plating, framed by a chaplet of roses, as seen on Her Majesty’s personal flag. The outer rim features the name of the coin issue, as well as the denomination, year and country of issue and ‘Elizabeth II’ as per all New Zealand currency.
This innovative coin comes housed in a specially designed leatherette case that will allow you to display and rotate your coin with pride. With a worldwide mintage of just 2,015, this unique coin won’t be available for long.
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