1 Tala - Tanumafili II Commonwealth Games, Silver Proof issue

Issued to mark the 1978 Commonwealth Games held in Edmonton, Alberta — the first Games hosted by Canada. Samoa's participation in Commonwealth sport was still a relatively new diplomatic expression; the country had only gained independence from New Zealand trusteeship in 1962, and Tanumafili II, who co-signed the independence declaration, remained head of state until his death in 2007, the longest-serving head of state of any Commonwealth nation at the time of his passing.