Coins of the New Zealand dollar

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This article concerns the coins of the New Zealand dollar.

Contents 1 History 2 Current Coinage 2.1 Specifications 2.2 Obverse 2.3 Reverse 3 Past Coinage 4 Other coins 5 Limits on coins allowed to be used 6 Use of other countries' coins 7 See also 8 References

[edit] History

On 10 July 1967, New Zealand's currency changed from the New Zealand pound to the decimal New Zealand dollar, at a ratio of 2½ dollars = 1 pound. Coins were introduced for 1, 2, 5, 10, 20 and 50 cents. The 1 and 2 cent coins were minted in bronze, with the other denominations in cupro-nickel. The 5, 10 and 20 cents were the same size as the earlier, equivalent 6 pence, 1 shilling and 1 florin. Indeed, until 1970, the 10 cents coin bore the additional legend "One Shilling". The obverse designs of all the coins featured Arnold Machin's portrait of Elizabeth II, with the legend ELIZABETH II NEW ZEALAND [date]. The initial designs for the reverse sides of the coins introduced in 1967 were rejected by the Royal Mint. Several more designs were produced, followed by a vigorous public debate. James Berry's designs were eventually accepted for most of the coins,^[1] although he was asked to rework his design for the 5c coin and Francis Shurrock's design for the 10c coin.^[2]

In 1986, New Zealand adopted Raphael Maklouf's new portrait of the Queen on all its coins. The 1 and 2 cent coins were last minted for circulation in 1987, with collector coins being made for 1988. The coins were demonetised on 1 May 1990. The lack of 1 and 2 cent coins meant that cash transactions were normally rounded to the nearest 5 cents (10 cents as of 2006), a process known as Swedish rounding. Some larger retailers (notably one supermarket chain), in the interests of public relations, elected to round the total price down (so that $4.99 became $4.95 instead of $5.00). Alternatively, many retailers rounded all their prices to the nearest 5 cents to avoid the issue entirely — so a New Zealand shopper often encountered products for sale at prices like $4.95.

In 1990, aluminium-bronze 1 and 2 dollar coins were introduced. In 1999, Ian Rank-Broadley's portrait of the Queen was introduced and the legend rearranged to read NEW ZEALAND ELIZABETH II [date].

On 11 November 2004, the Reserve Bank announced that it proposed to take the 5¢ coin out of circulation and to make the existing 50, 20 and 10 cent coins smaller and use plated steel to make them lighter. The reasons given were:

1. The 5¢ coin is now worth a third what a cent was worth back in 1967, when New Zealand decimalised its currency.
2. Surveys had found that 50, 20 and 10 cent coins were too large and could not be easily carried in large quantities. The original 50c coin, with a diameter of 3.2 centimetres, was one of the largest coins in circulation worldwide.
3. The size of the 10¢ piece was too close to that of the dollar - so close, in fact, that it has been possible on occasion to put two 10c pieces in a parking meter together and receive a dollar's worth of parking time. (Naturally, this can also backfire and jam the meter.)
4. The prices of copper and nickel used to mint the old coins were high and rising steeply.

After a three-month public submission period that ended on 4 February 2005, the Reserve Bank announced on 31 March it would go ahead with the proposed changes. The changeover period started on 31 July 2006, with the old coins usable up until 31 October 2006. The older 50, 20, 10 and 5 cent pieces are now no longer legal tender, but are still redeemable at the Reserve Bank.

In August 2005, the Royal Canadian Mint, who has minted Canadian coins in plated steel in the past, was selected by the Reserve Bank to make the new coins. The new coins have a unique electromagnetic signature which enables modern vending machines to determine coin counterfeiting and foreign coins [1]. It was estimated the changeover would remove nearly five million dollars of foreign coinage from circulation.

[edit] Current Coinage

As of 1 November 2006, there are five denominations of coins in regular circulation: 10c, 20c, 50c, $1, and $2.

Commemorative and collectable coins are available from New Zealand Post as the agent for the Reserve Bank.

[edit] Specifications

Denomination	Diameter	Thickness	Mass	Composition	Edge	Introduced
Ten cents	20.5 mm	1.58 mm	3.3 g	Copper-plated steel	Plain	31 July 2006
Twenty cents	21.75 mm	1.56 mm	4 g	Nickel-plated steel	Spanish Flower Seven plain sections separated by indents.	31 July 2006
Fifty cents	24.75 mm	1.7 mm	5 g	Nickel-plated steel	Plain	31 July 2006
One dollar	23 mm	2.74 mm	8 g	Aluminium-bronze	Eight equal segments alternating between reeding and plain edge.	1990
Two Dollars	26.5 mm	2.7 mm	10 g	Aluminium-bronze	Reeded with an indented, plain channel containing ten raised dots.	1990

[edit] Obverse

With the exception of pre-1999 one-dollar and two-dollar coins, all current legal tender coins have Ian Rank-Broadley's portrait of Queen Elizabeth II, with the legend around the outside reading NEW ZEALAND ELIZABETH II [year of minting].

Pre-1999 $1 and $2 coins have Raphael Maklouf's portrait of the Queen, and the legend reads ELIZABETH II NEW ZEALAND [year of minting].

[edit] Reverse

Denomination	Image	Description
$0.10		A Māori koruru, or carved head
$0.20		Māori carving of Pukaki, a chief of the Ngati Whakaue iwi[3][4]
$0.50		James Cook's HM Bark Endeavour and Mount Taranaki
$1.00		Kiwi and Silver Fern
$2.00		Kotuku (white heron)

[edit] Past Coinage

Changes to coinage in 1990 and 2006 has resulted in several demonetised coins. Coins have been demonitised for various reasons.

This is a list of demonitised coins:

Denomination	Image	Attributes	Minting dates	Demonetisation date	Reason for Demonetisation
One cent		17.526 mm diameter Plain edge Reverse side featured a silver fern	1967 to 1988	1990	Coin of little value
Two cents		21.082 mm diameter Plain edge Reverse side featured kowhai flowers	1967 to 1988	1990	Coin of little value
Five cents		19.431 mm diameter 2.83 g mass Reeded edge Cupronickel composition Reverse side featured a tuatara	1967 to 2004	31 October 2006	Coin of little value
Ten cents		23.62 mm diameter 5.66 g mass Reeded edge Cupronickel composition Reverse side same as today, but with the words "One Shilling"	1967 to 1969	31 October 2006	Coin replaced with smaller version
Ten cents		23.62 mm diameter 5.66 g mass Reeded edge Cupronickel composition Reverse side same as today	1970 to 2004	31 October 2006	Coin replaced with smaller version
Twenty cents		28.58 mm diameter 11.31 g mass Reeded edge Cupronickel composition Reverse side featured a kiwi	1967 to 1990	31 October 2006	Coin replaced with smaller version
Twenty cents		28.58 mm diameter 11.31 g mass Reeded edge Cupronickel composition Reverse side same as today	1990 to 2004	31 October 2006	Coin replaced with smaller version
Fifty cents		31.75 mm diameter 13.61 g mass Edge had 10 sections, alternating between plain and reeded Cupronickel composition Reverse side same as today	1967 to 2004	31 October 2006	Coin replaced with smaller version

[edit] Other coins

• A mule 2 cents coin was issued in 1967, featuring the obverse of the Bahamian 5 cents.

• Silver Dollars: New Zealand has produced many silver dollars, usually annually. Listed here are the descriptions given to the dollars.
  • 1967: Coat of Arms
  • 1969: Cook bicentenary
  • 1970: Mt. Cook
  • 1970: Cook Islands
  • 1971-1973: Coat of Arms
  • 1974: Games
  • 1974: N.Z.Day
  • 1975-1976: Coat of Arms
  • 1980: Fantail
  • 1981: Royal Visit
  • 1982: Takahē
  • 1983: Royal Visit
  • 1983: 50th Anniversary
  • 1984: Black Robin
  • 1985: Black Stilt
  • 1986: Royal Visit
  • 1987: National Parks
  • 1988: Penguin
  • 1989: Games (4 variants, Runner, Gymnast, Swimmer, Weightlifter)
  • 1990: 150th Anniversary (Treaty of Waitangi)

• A range of two dollar coins depicting a kingfisher were made during 1993.

• Five dollar coins: Minted sporadically from 1990 onwards. Five dollar coins have never been minted for circulation but specifically for commemorative purposes. They are legal tender.

• Ten dollar coins: Minted sporadically from 1995 onwards. Ten dollar coins have never been minted for circulation. They are legal tender.

• Twenty dollar coins: Minted in 1995 and 1997, only 2 sets of twenty dollar coins have been made.

• One Hundred and Fifty dollar coins: Minted in 1990 and 1998, only 2 sets of one hundred and fifty dollar coins have been made.

[edit] Limits on coins allowed to be used

According to the Reserve Bank Act 1989, there are limits on the amount that can be paid for by coins:^[5]

• coins of a denomination of $10 or more, there is no limit
• coins of a denomination of $1 or more but less than $10, the limit is $100
• coins of the denomination of 5 cents or more, but less than $1, the limit is $5

[edit] Use of other countries' coins

Due to regional travel and the fact that many other former British colonies around the world use coinage systems with British-derived origins of sizing and weight, many Fijian, Samoan, Singaporean, South African, and especially Australian coins had been in daily circulation in New Zealand despite not being official legal tender. It is of note that the United Kingdom itself does not use these sizes of coins any more, and there has been the odd case of foreign coins appearing in a customer's change. The consistently similar but not significantly higher value of the Australian currency and the obverse side of Australian coins being almost the same as New Zealand coins also didn't discourage this practice, with millions of 5, 10, and 20 cent Australian coins having been used in New Zealand in an identical manner to their true counterparts. These coins can circulate for long periods without being recognised.The coinage size and material changeover (see below) of 31 July to 31 October 2006 means these foreign coins can no longer be accepted interchangeably, though the new 10 cent coin strongly resembles the British one penny coin in size, weight and appearance and the unchanged one dollar coin remains very similar to the Fijian counterpart.

[edit] See also

• New Zealand dollar
• New Zealand Post, which sells New Zealand coins

[edit] References

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