Queen Elizabeth II dies at age 96. Video / Getty / AP / NZ Herald
The Royal Australian Mint has provided an exciting look at the first 2023 coin to be minted not only in Australia but around the world.
In a surprising twist, the face of Queen Elizabeth II - not King Charles - features on one side of the coin in a touching tribute to the late monarch.
The piece includes the dates 1952 to 2022, the dates of Queen Elizabeth II’s reign.
The other side features the CSIRO’s flagship vessel, the Research Vessel Investigator, and “never-been-seen-before” deep sea creatures, including the bigfin squid, brittle star, dumbo octopus, cactus urchin and the spiny king crab.
The coin will feature the face of Queen Elizabeth II. Photo / Supplied
“So much of our deep ocean remains a mystery – we know more about the surface of Mars than we do about our deepest oceans,” CSIRO Acting CEO, Professor Elanor Huntington said.
This area, which is known as the abyss, is one of the least explored areas in the world, with depths of up to 6km below sea level.
“It’s exciting that the 2023 new coin collection will celebrate this voyage and the significant contribution it has made to better understand life in our oceans.”
Royal Australian Mint CEO Leigh Gordon welcomed back keen coin collectors for the first time since the start of the Covid pandemic.
“After a two-year hiatus, we are excited to bring back this annual tradition and have members of the public gather in person to collect the first coins, as well as observe the exciting new theme of the collection – Creatures of the Deep, " Gordon said.
“This year, we are celebrating the incredible discoveries of Australian scientists aboard the CSIRO’s Research Vessel Investigator.”
The front of the coin features CSIRO’s flagship vessel, the Research Vessel Investigator and deep sea creatures. Image / Royal Australian Mint
Commemorative coins with the Queen’s image have also been struck over the past seven decades in New Zealand, including those to acknowledge her Coronation in 1953 and the Silver Jubilee in 1977 that also marked Waitangi Day - which shared the anniversary of King George VI’s death.
In New Zealand, the Queen was likely to remain on $20 banknotes issued from existing stock for many years to come.
“We manufacture these notes infrequently and do not plan to destroy stock or shorten the life of existing banknotes just because they show the Queen,” a Reserve Bank spokesman said.
“This would be wasteful and poor environmental practice.”
All coin stock for a denomination showing the Queen would also be issued before new stock went out with her successor’s image, he said.
“This may be a few years after a change of sovereign. We will let everyone know when coins bearing the image of the new sovereign are due to enter circulation.”
