This piece was struck to commemorate the 50th anniversary of Korean independence — or more precisely, the government's chosen framing of it. Park Chung-hee, who had seized power in a 1961 military coup, used commemorative coinage aggressively throughout his presidency as a tool of national image-building, both domestically and for export to collectors. The 1970 issues were among the earliest of these programs and were produced in limited numbers, largely for sale abroad rather than domestic circulation.
This piece was struck to commemorate the 50th anniversary of Korean independence — or more precisely, the government's chosen framing of it. Park Chung-hee, who had seized power in a 1961 military coup, used commemorative coinage aggressively throughout his presidency as a tool of national image-building, both domestically and for export to collectors. The 1970 issues were among the earliest of these programs and were produced in limited numbers, largely for sale abroad rather than domestic circulation.