Gibraltar's 21st Century Crown was part of a wave of millennial and new-century commemorative programs issued by British Overseas Territories in the early 2000s, many produced through the Pobjoy Mint under licensing arrangements. The tri-metal construction — achieved through a diffusion bonding process rather than a simple clad sandwich — was a genuine technical novelty at the time, allowing distinct ring segments in a single struck disc.
Pearl black silver, achieved via chemical oxidation, was still an uncommon finish for circulation-weight commemoratives in 2001.
Gibraltar's 21st Century Crown was part of a wave of millennial and new-century commemorative programs issued by British Overseas Territories in the early 2000s, many produced through the Pobjoy Mint under licensing arrangements. The tri-metal construction — achieved through a diffusion bonding process rather than a simple clad sandwich — was a genuine technical novelty at the time, allowing distinct ring segments in a single struck disc.
Pearl black silver, achieved via chemical oxidation, was still an uncommon finish for circulation-weight commemoratives in 2001.