1/2 Dollar - Charles III Darth Vader

The Solomon Islands has issued fantasy coins under legitimate government authority since the early 2000s, licensing pop-culture imagery through arrangements with major studios. This piece falls squarely in that commercial novelty category — struck not for circulation but for the souvenir and gift market, with gold-plated iron construction making the economics obvious.

The "Charles III" obverse authority is a post-2022 updating of earlier Solomon Islands issues that carried Elizabeth II's effigy; the transition created a brief window of high-volume novelty restrikings across Pacific island licensees.