Tonga's first decimal coinage, introduced in 1967, replaced the pound sterling system that had governed the islands since the late nineteenth century. The transition was part of a broader Pacific-region shift — Fiji, Australia, and New Zealand had all decimalized within the preceding two years. Tupou IV had ascended the throne only in 1965 following the death of his mother, Queen Sālote, and the new coinage was among his earliest acts of administrative modernization.
The series was struck at the Royal Mint in Llantrisant, Wales.
Tonga's first decimal coinage, introduced in 1967, replaced the pound sterling system that had governed the islands since the late nineteenth century. The transition was part of a broader Pacific-region shift — Fiji, Australia, and New Zealand had all decimalized within the preceding two years. Tupou IV had ascended the throne only in 1965 following the death of his mother, Queen Sālote, and the new coinage was among his earliest acts of administrative modernization.
The series was struck at the Royal Mint in Llantrisant, Wales.