Catalog
See full images - free registration
Continue with Google - no registration!
or register with email
Why register? Just to keep bots out of our catalog. Your email stays private - we will never share it or send you anything uninvited. We guarantee you that!
5 Toea - Elizabeth II Pig Nosed Turtle
| Issuer | Bank of Papua New Guinea |
|---|---|
| Year | 1975-1999 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | Log in to see details |
| Currency | Log in to see details |
| Composition | Copper-nickel (75% Copper, 25% Nickel) |
| Weight | Log in to see details |
| Diameter | Log in to see details |
| Thickness | Log in to see details |
| Shape | Log in to see details |
| Technique | Log in to see details |
| Orientation | Log in to see details |
| Engraver(s) | Log in to see details |
| In circulation to | Log in to see details |
| Reference(s) | Log in to see details |
| Obverse description | Central device depicts the Bird of Paradise perched upon a traditional Papua New Guinean drum (kundu), rendered in fine relief with elaborately spread plumage and detailed featherwork. The bird faces left with wings outstretched, set against a plain field. The legend PAPUA NEW GUINEA arcs along the upper periphery in bold Latin capitals, while the date 1975 appears in the lower field beneath the central device. A decorative beaded border runs continuously around the entire circumference of the coin. |
|---|---|
| Obverse script | Latin |
| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Reverse description | Log in to see details |
| Reverse script | Log in to see details |
| Reverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Edge | Log in to see details |
| Mint | Log in to see details |
| Mintage | Log in to see details |
| Additional information |
The pig-nosed turtle — endemic to a single river system in Papua New Guinea's Western Province and the Northern Territory of Australia — was chosen for this coin at independence in 1975 as part of a broader effort to anchor the new nation's currency to its unique fauna. It was a deliberate political act: the kina and toea coinage replaced the Australian dollar overnight on April 19th of that year, severing the last practical monetary link to Australian administration.
The species itself was poorly understood by science at the time of minting. Its taxonomic isolation — sole member of the family Carettochelyidae — wasn't widely appreciated outside specialist literature until decades later.