Australian Silver Koala

The Silver Koala Bear is a silver coin originating from Australia and produced at the Perth Mint. While the obverse of the coin always depicts Queen Elizabeth II of Australia, the reverse side changes every year, always featuring a koala, a marsupial native to Australia.

Silver Koala
Australia
Value1 Dollar (face value)
Mass31.1 g (1.0 troy oz)
Diameter40.6 mm (1.52 in)
Thickness4.0 mm (0.157 in)
EdgeReeded
Composition99.99% Ag
Years of minting2007-present
Obverse
DesignQueen Elizabeth II
DesignerJody Clark
Design date2015
Reverse
DesignKoala hanging onto a tree branch
Design date2019

The mint updates the monarch's portrait on obverse of the coin periodically. For example, Queen Elizabeth II has six portraits made in the course of her reign. However, only the fourth and sixth portraits were used on silver koalas.[1]

Silver koalas have higher collectible value than some other bullion coins due to the yearly design change and limited production. The coins are minted yearly in up to five different sizes.

Specifications

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Specifications[2]
Weight
(troy oz)
Weight
(grams)
Face Value Diameter
(mm)
Thickness†
(mm)
1,002.5 AU$30 100.6 14.6
10 312.35 AU$10 75.6 8.7
1 31.14 AU$1 40.6 4
12 15.6 50 cents 36.6 2.3
110 3.135 10 cents 20.6 2

† This is the maximum thickness. Thicknesses are different based upon the yearly design of the reverse side.

History

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In its first year of 2007, only the one-ounce bullion coin was minted. All other sizes were minted in 2008, except for the 110 oz, which started to be produced in 2011. Between 2008 and 2010, the only numismatic or proof coinage minted was the one-ounce with gilded koalas. As of 2020, bullion coins are currently released in 1 kg and 1 oz sizes and the numismatic coinage is minted in 5 oz and 1 oz sizes, with other sizes released occasionally. The coins were .999 fine silver until the 2018 edition, which increased in purity to .9999 silver. Perth Mint originally had no caps on the amount of one-ounce coins produced, but since 2018, it has been capped to 300,000.[3][4]

Special editions such as privy marked, colored and gilded are often available.[5]

Mintages for
one-ounce bullion coins
Year Standard[3] Privy marks[3]
2007 137,768 - -
2008 84,057 Fabulous 12 5,000
2009 336,757 - -
2010 233,531 - -
2011 910,480 Berlin bear 48,920
2012 388,046 32,361
2013 477,209 Chinese lettering 10,392
2014 334,884 8,397
2015 450,899 - -
2016 300,000 - -
2017 Kangaroo 40,636
Rooster 24,940
2018 166,434 Dog 9,200
2019 Pig
Mintages for proof coins[4]
Year 1 oz 5 oz 1 kg
2007 - - -
2008 8,361 (Gilded) - -
2009 5,085 (Gilded) - -
2010 4,842 (Gilded) - -
2011 4,818 (Gilded) 5,000 -
2012 4,466 (Gilded) 4,178 471
9,302 (High relief)
2013 4,844 (Gilded) 5,000 333
8,796 (High relief)
2014 3,040 (Gilded) 367 500
1,211 (High relief)
2,092 (Colored)
2015 2,186 (Gilded) 1,033 417
3,791 (High relief)
2016 2,241 (High relief) 952 143
2017 1,730 (High relief) 398 157
2018 135 (High relief) 231 -

See also

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References

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General
  • 2020 Standard Catalog of World Coins - 1901–2000, 47th Edition, publication date 2019, Krause Publications, ISBN 978-1-4402-4896-2
  • 2020 Standard Catalog of World Coins - 2001–Date, 14th Edition, publication date 2019, Krause Publications, ISBN 978-1-4402-4897-9
Specific
  1. ^ "Search the coin catalogue – Numista". en.numista.com. Retrieved 2023-06-06.
  2. ^ "Koala". bullionweb.de. Retrieved 21 February 2020.
  3. ^ a b c "Bullion coin mintages". Perth Mint. Retrieved 23 February 2020.
  4. ^ a b "Numismatic Mintage". Perth Mint. Retrieved 23 February 2020.
  5. ^ "Everything You Need to Know About Koala Silver Coins (2023 Update) | Silver Bullion". www.silverbullion.com.sg. 2019-01-09. Retrieved 2023-06-06.