5 Tālā - Tanumafili II People and Buildings

Tanumafili II held the position of O le Ao o le Malo — head of state of Samoa — from independence in 1962 until his death in 2007, making him one of the longest-serving heads of state in the world at the time. He was also the longest-lived adherent of the Bahá'í Faith to hold national leadership, having converted in 1968. The 1997 issue falls squarely within a period when Samoa was producing small silver commemoratives largely for the collector export market rather than domestic circulation.