The Australian 50 cent denomination was first introduced as a silver coin with decimalisation on 14 February 1966, but was changed in 1969 to its current specifications: a large dodecagonal (12-sided) copper-nickel coin; apart from the usual design featuring the Australian Coat of Arms, the denomination is also extensively used to issue circulating commemorative coins with various reverses. It is one of the heaviest coins in regular circulation in the world.
Apart from circulating coins, the Royal Australian Mint has a range of Non-Circulating Legal Tender (NCLT) 50 cent coins issued for collectors, such as this one.
The non-circulating coin celebrates the iconic bush poet Banjo Paterson and his most famous work - The Man from Snowy River.
The Man from Snowy River was published in The Bulletin in 1890, while Paterson was working as a solicitor in Sydney. Along many other urban Australians, Paterson dreamed of a life of adventure, and the romance of the Australian "bush" (wilderness).
The coin is made of Aluminium Bronze and not copper-nickel as the regular circulating 50 cents (in other words, it is an "off-metal strike"). |