The Richmond Birdwing (*Ornithoptera richmondia*) was by 2016 restricted to a corridor of subtropical rainforest in southeast Queensland barely 100 kilometers long — one of the most geographically confined butterfly ranges of any species on the continent. The Perth Mint's pad-printing process, applied here to aluminium bronze, was specifically adopted to render the iridescent wing coloration that conventional die striking cannot replicate in metal alone.
The Richmond Birdwing (*Ornithoptera richmondia*) was by 2016 restricted to a corridor of subtropical rainforest in southeast Queensland barely 100 kilometers long — one of the most geographically confined butterfly ranges of any species on the continent. The Perth Mint's pad-printing process, applied here to aluminium bronze, was specifically adopted to render the iridescent wing coloration that conventional die striking cannot replicate in metal alone.