The Kruzenstern — originally launched as the Padua in 1926 for a German nitrate shipping company — was seized by the Soviet Union as war reparations in 1946 and renamed after the Baltic German admiral who led Russia's first circumnavigation in 1803–1806. She still operates as a sail training vessel out of Kaliningrad, making her one of the last working four-masted barques afloat. Cook Islands ship series issues of this period were produced by the Pobjoy Mint under licensing arrangements, with the islands' geographical remoteness making them a convenient issuing authority for themed collector programs bearing no relation to local commerce.
The Kruzenstern — originally launched as the Padua in 1926 for a German nitrate shipping company — was seized by the Soviet Union as war reparations in 1946 and renamed after the Baltic German admiral who led Russia's first circumnavigation in 1803–1806. She still operates as a sail training vessel out of Kaliningrad, making her one of the last working four-masted barques afloat. Cook Islands ship series issues of this period were produced by the Pobjoy Mint under licensing arrangements, with the islands' geographical remoteness making them a convenient issuing authority for themed collector programs bearing no relation to local commerce.