Well, not exactly. This is actually 2007 copper coin issued by the Cook Islands to form a unique tribute to the 1930 Australian Penny – truly the King of Australian Coins. True collector’s coin (mintage 50,000 , metal:copper).
Not only this coin was 40mm in diameter but also 3mm in thickness. Not easy to make a ring out of this coin for sure, well at least it was not easy for me.
The Australian penny was a coin of the Australian pound used in the Commonwealth of Australia prior to decimalisation in 1966. It was worth one twelfth of an Australian shilling and 1/240 of an Australian pound. The coin was equivalent in its dimensions, composition and value to the British penny, as the two currencies were fixed at par.
The coin was first introduced in 1911, and stopped being minted in 1964, with the introduction of decimalisation. When decimalisation happened on 14 February 1966, the coin value was equal to 0.8333¢.
The obverse of the coin featured the reigning Australian monarch. Three were featured: George V, George VI and Elizabeth II. All of the pennies featuring George VI and Elizabeth II had a kangaroo on the reverse. The same image was on the Australian half-penny and has since been included on the dollar coin and the bullion silver kangaroo.
During the George VI era, coins minted at Melbourne had a dot at the end of the word “PENNY”, while coins from Perth did not have a dot. This continued through the end of the coin’s lifetime.
The 1930 penny is one of the rarest Australian coins, due to a very small number being minted. It is highly sought after by coin collectors, and a 1930 penny in very fine condition can be worth A$45,000 or more.
An interesting ABC article back from 2009.
And here is my pictorial on how I hand “turned” this 40mm in diameter 1930 Australian copper penny into a coin ring. I sold it the next day after I hand crafted at the Kalamunda market. Thank you Rod !!!
