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20 Poe rava Marquesas Islands
| Issuer | French Polynesia › French Polynesia (1957-date) |
|---|---|
| Year | 2015 |
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| Shape | Round |
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| Obverse description | Central device depicts a hermit crab without its shell, rendered in high relief and occupying the majority of the coin's field. The legend ARCHIPEL DES MARQUISES arcs along the upper portion of the coin, with the date 2015 inscribed to the right. The denomination 20 POE RAVA appears in large lettering across the lower field, flanking the crab motif. |
|---|---|
| Obverse script | Latin |
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| Additional information |
The poe rava — black pearl — became the economic backbone of the Marquesas after traditional copra markets collapsed in the late twentieth century. French Polynesia's pearl industry, centered on Tuamotu atolls but deeply tied to Marquesan identity, was formalized through a series of regional cultivation agreements in the 1970s and 1980s that transformed lagoon aquaculture into the territory's largest export earner. Issuing a denomination named directly for the commodity reflects how thoroughly pearl farming restructured the archipelago's economy.