5 Dollars - Elizabeth II 4th Portrait - Battle of Sunda Strait - Proof

The Battle of the Sunda Strait, fought on 28 February–1 March 1942, ended with the sinking of HMAS Perth and USS Houston after they ran headlong into the main Japanese invasion fleet for Java in the dead of night. Of the Perth's crew, 353 men died in the battle itself; many of the survivors spent the remainder of the war in Japanese captivity, a significant number dying on the Burma-Thailand Railway.

This 2002 proof issue was part of the Royal Australian Mint's ongoing series commemorating the 60th anniversary of key Second World War naval engagements involving Australian forces. The aluminium bronze composition mirrors the circulating $5 denomination rather than a precious metal strike.