10 Cents Nickel pattern

South Africa's decimal coinage transition was legislated under the Decimal Coinage Act of 1959, with 1961 set as the changeover date. The years immediately following saw the South African Mint experimenting with compositions before settling on nickel for the smaller denominations. This 1963 piece postdates the official introduction, suggesting it belongs to a series of ongoing trials rather than pre-launch testing — the Mint continued refining specifications well after decimal circulation coinage was already in the public's hands.