20 Dollars Christmas Tree

Kiribati has issued its own coinage since independence from Britain in 1979, but the islands have no functioning domestic coin market — virtually all collector issues are produced under contract by foreign mints and sold directly into the numismatic trade. This piece is one of them. The Christmas Island that gives Kiribati's most famous atoll its name was so designated by Captain Cook, who sighted it on December 24, 1777.