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2 Dollars - Elizabeth II 1980 Family Portrait
| Issuer | Cook Islands |
|---|---|
| Year | 1997 |
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| Engraver(s) | Raphael David Maklouf |
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| Obverse description | Right-facing effigy of Queen Elizabeth II wearing the Girls of Great Britain and Ireland tiara, a pearl drop earring, and a pearl necklace, as executed by engraver Raphael David Maklouf. The Queen's hair is elaborately coiffed and the portrait is rendered in high relief against a mirror-like proof field. The legend ELIZABETH II arcs across the upper left and COOK ISLANDS across the upper right, with the date 1997 positioned in the lower exergual area. The initials RDM, denoting the engraver, appear to the left of the truncation. |
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| Edge | Milled |
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| Additional information |
The "Family Portrait" designation refers to a 1980 photograph of the British royal family taken by Lord Snowdon, which Cook Islands licensing arrangements allowed to be reproduced on commemorative issues well into the 1990s. Cook Islands has long used its constitutional relationship with New Zealand — and by extension the Crown — to justify a prolific commemorative program that far exceeds any domestic circulation need.
KM#436 is one of dozens of Cook Islands silver issues from this period struck at .500 fineness rather than the more typical .925, a cost-reduction choice that kept these pieces accessible to the thematic collector market without sacrificing the "silver" designation.