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1 Crown - George VI Royal Visit
| Issuer | New Zealand |
|---|---|
| Year | 1949 |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Reference(s) | KM#22, Dav AAO#434 |
| Obverse description | Bare-headed effigy of King George VI facing left, rendered in high relief with finely detailed hair and collar, after the portrait by Thomas Humphrey Paget. The engraver's initials HP appear incuse at the truncation of the neck. The circular legend reads KING GEORGE THE SIXTH around the periphery, with a fine beaded border encircling the entire field. |
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| Obverse lettering | KING GEORGE THE SIXTH HP |
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| Additional information |
This crown was struck to commemorate a royal visit that never happened as planned. The 1949 issue was prepared in anticipation of a tour by George VI, but the King's deteriorating health — he was already suffering from the arteriosclerosis that would kill him in February 1952 — forced the cancellation of the visit. New Zealand went ahead and released the coins anyway, making this one of the more unusual commemoratives in Commonwealth numismatics: a souvenir of an event that did not occur.
Mintage was relatively modest, struck at the Royal Mint on .500 fine silver, the wartime-era standard that Britain had adopted in 1920 and never fully reversed for colonial issues.