Pūkaki was one of four tuatara released at Nga Manu Nature Reserve in Waikanae in the early 1990s as part of a captive breeding programme aimed at reversing population collapse on the mainland. His selection for this coin made the piedfort a quiet record of conservation politics as much as numismatics — New Zealand was actively legislating stronger protections for tuatara through this period.
The piedfort format, struck at twice the standard thickness, was a deliberate premium collectible decision by the Reserve Bank, issued alongside the standard proof. Mintages for New Zealand piedforts of this era were typically very small, often under 1,000 pieces.
Pūkaki was one of four tuatara released at Nga Manu Nature Reserve in Waikanae in the early 1990s as part of a captive breeding programme aimed at reversing population collapse on the mainland. His selection for this coin made the piedfort a quiet record of conservation politics as much as numismatics — New Zealand was actively legislating stronger protections for tuatara through this period.
The piedfort format, struck at twice the standard thickness, was a deliberate premium collectible decision by the Reserve Bank, issued alongside the standard proof. Mintages for New Zealand piedforts of this era were typically very small, often under 1,000 pieces.