Bhutan's 1979 silver issues were produced as part of a broader commemorative program timed loosely around the coronation period of Jigme Singye Wangchuck, who took the throne in 1974 at age seventeen — the youngest reigning monarch in the world at the time. The Royal Government contracted the Franklin Mint for production of several denominations in this series, a common arrangement for smaller nations seeking internationally marketable collector pieces during the 1970s.
The base-metal KM#50 was the circulating issue; this .925 silver piece exists purely for the collector market and saw no domestic circulation.
Bhutan's 1979 silver issues were produced as part of a broader commemorative program timed loosely around the coronation period of Jigme Singye Wangchuck, who took the throne in 1974 at age seventeen — the youngest reigning monarch in the world at the time. The Royal Government contracted the Franklin Mint for production of several denominations in this series, a common arrangement for smaller nations seeking internationally marketable collector pieces during the 1970s.
The base-metal KM#50 was the circulating issue; this .925 silver piece exists purely for the collector market and saw no domestic circulation.