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1 Dollar - Elizabeth II 4th Portrait - Holey Dollar and Dump
| Issuer | Royal Australian Mint |
|---|---|
| Year | 2003 |
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| Engraver(s) | Ian Rank-Broadley (obverse) |
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|---|---|
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| Obverse lettering | ELIZABETH II AUSTRALIA 2003 CAROLUS IIII DEI GRATIA NEW SOUTH WALES 1813 ONE DOLLAR |
| Reverse description | The reverse evokes the design of the original 1813 Holey Dollar reverse, reproducing the counterstamped legends of the Spanish colonial host coin around the large central perforation. The field bears the partial legends of the original eight-real piece — REX M 8R F M HISPAN ET — together with a crowned royal arms device, all finished in mirror proof. The Dump insert, visible within the central hole, bears the crowned legend FIFTEEN PENCE and NEW SOUTH WALES on its reverse, faithfully echoing the original colonial counterstamp. An outer dark-enamelled border carries the bold inscriptions HOLEY DOLLAR AND DUMP, 1813, and Colony of New South Wales in raised white lettering. Selective gilt highlighting on the crown device provides colour contrast against the polished silver surfaces. |
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| Additional information |
The original Holey Dollar and Dump of 1813 were Australia's first locally issued currency — Governor Lachlan Macquarie's pragmatic solution to a chronic coin shortage in New South Wales. Spanish colonial eight reales were imported, their centres punched out, and the two resulting pieces each assigned separate face values: fifteen shillings for the ring, fifteen pence for the plug. One coin became two, effectively doubling the circulating supply.
This 2003 commemorative reproduces that conceit as a single minted piece rather than two separate coins, a technical compromise that has drawn collector debate since the format was introduced.