Issued as part of Indonesia's contribution to the WWF-linked conservation coinage wave of the 1970s, this piece was struck primarily for the international collector market rather than domestic circulation. Bank Indonesia released several wildlife-themed silver issues during this period under the broader umbrella of the FAO and conservation programs gaining traction across developing nations at the time.
The Bornean and Sumatran orangutan populations were already under documented pressure from logging concessions expanding rapidly through Kalimantan in the early 1970s — which lent the subject genuine urgency rather than mere symbolism.
Issued as part of Indonesia's contribution to the WWF-linked conservation coinage wave of the 1970s, this piece was struck primarily for the international collector market rather than domestic circulation. Bank Indonesia released several wildlife-themed silver issues during this period under the broader umbrella of the FAO and conservation programs gaining traction across developing nations at the time.
The Bornean and Sumatran orangutan populations were already under documented pressure from logging concessions expanding rapidly through Kalimantan in the early 1970s — which lent the subject genuine urgency rather than mere symbolism.