Catalog
1/2 Crown
| Issuer | Malawi |
|---|---|
| Year | 1964 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | 1/2 Crown (1/8) |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
| Obverse script | Latin |
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| Reverse description | The full Malawian coat of arms dominates the central field, depicting a quartered shield supported by a lion rampant to the left and a leopard rampant to the right, with a rising sun and an African fish eagle atop the crest. A scrolled ribbon below the shield bears the national motto 'UNITY AND FREEDOM'. The denomination 'HALF CROWN' is inscribed in large letters arcing around the left and right periphery of the field, with the date '1964' placed prominently in the lower exergue beneath the motto ribbon. |
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| Additional information |
Malawi's 1964 coinage was issued the same year the country achieved independence from British colonial rule — July 6th, with Hastings Banda becoming the first Prime Minister. The half crown denomination itself was borrowed directly from the outgoing British Rhodesia and Nyasaland coinage structure, a transitional choice that kept familiar units in circulation while the new nation established its monetary footing. Malawi abandoned the pound system entirely just two years later when the kwacha was introduced in 1971, making this entire 1964 series short-lived by design.