The 3 Mils denomination was proposed for Cyprus as part of the island's decimalization planning in the early 1970s, with the Royal Mint producing planchet trials to test aluminum blanks before any dies were cut. The denomination was ultimately abandoned before coinage commenced — Cyprus decimalized in 1983 with a different unit structure entirely, rendering these trial pieces dead ends in the truest sense.
Aluminum was under serious consideration across several British-administered and formerly-administered territories during this period as rising copper prices made traditional bronze flans economically impractical at low denominations.
The 3 Mils denomination was proposed for Cyprus as part of the island's decimalization planning in the early 1970s, with the Royal Mint producing planchet trials to test aluminum blanks before any dies were cut. The denomination was ultimately abandoned before coinage commenced — Cyprus decimalized in 1983 with a different unit structure entirely, rendering these trial pieces dead ends in the truest sense.
Aluminum was under serious consideration across several British-administered and formerly-administered territories during this period as rising copper prices made traditional bronze flans economically impractical at low denominations.