Australia. Proof uniface striking of a shilling 1937. 1937
2.36 cm (diameter) | RCIN 445281
-
1 coin : silver
Obverse: Blank
Reverse: Head of a sheep. Above: AUSTRALIA Below: SHILLING 1937
‘On 13 December 1937 the Royal Mint received a visit from Queen Mary and her two eldest granddaughters, the 11-year-old Princess Elizabeth (the future Queen Elizabeth II), and her 7-year-old sister, Princess Margaret Rose. They toured the Royal Mint as part of an educational programme. The Royal Mint officials went to great lengths to make the factory tour interesting for the young Princesses. The Royal visitors saw coins being struck and were presented with sets of the actual coins they had seen being made. The coins all bore animal designs, which it was hoped would particularly appeal to the young royals. The Royal Mint selected 18 available animal designs: all were struck in .925 silver for the sake of uniformity, regardless of the metal in which the original coin was struck. They were uniface, or one-sided, and the designs used were inevitably from the reverses of the original coins, and some were undated.
Two of the designs chosen were from coins that had not yet been issued. The Australian shilling depicting a merino sheep and the Australian penny depicting a kangaroo, both dated 1937 in this set, were issued for circulation only in 1938. Cheek, p. 98
Provenance
Presented to the Princess Elizabeth on the occasion of her visit to the Royal Mint with Queen Mary, 13 December 1937.
-
Creator(s)
(mint)(designer)(nationality) -
Medium and techniques
Measurements
2.36 cm (diameter)