Magellan's circumnavigation — completed in 1522 under Elcano after Magellan's death in the Philippines — was financed by the Spanish Crown as a westward challenge to Portugal's eastern monopoly on the spice trade. Of the five ships and 270 men that departed Seville in 1519, one ship and 18 men returned. Niue, a self-governing territory in free association with New Zealand, issues commemoratives under its own authority and has produced dozens of historical figure coins through the Perth Mint and others.
Magellan's circumnavigation — completed in 1522 under Elcano after Magellan's death in the Philippines — was financed by the Spanish Crown as a westward challenge to Portugal's eastern monopoly on the spice trade. Of the five ships and 270 men that departed Seville in 1519, one ship and 18 men returned. Niue, a self-governing territory in free association with New Zealand, issues commemoratives under its own authority and has produced dozens of historical figure coins through the Perth Mint and others.