Gold Half Ounce 2024 Australian Kangaroo, Proof, Coin from Australia - detailed information

The Australian half-ounce gold piece (abbreviated as 1/2 oz and designated with Au for "gold") is a bullion coin format. Uniquely, in Australia there are two mints authorised to strike legal tender: the Royal Australian Mint (which also makes the country's circulating coinage) and the Perth Mint which only makes collector and bullion coins, as well as other bullion products.

Both mints endeavour to create coins with attractive designs, and to introduce new designs and themes often, in order to raise the numismatic value of the coins over the value of previous metal used.

This gold proof coin featuring a Red Kangaroo is part of the long-running Australian Kangaroo bullion coin series by the Perth Mint.

The Australian Kangaroo series features a new bullion design every year, and a "definitive design" which doesn't change and is usually reserved only for the gold kilo and the silver ounce formats. This coin is one of the rare exceptions, and features the definitive Red Kangaroo design by Stuart Devlin in a half ounce of gold. It was issued as part of a four-coin collector set, together with three other gold sizes.

The mint says about the series:
The red kangaroo is Australia’s largest living marsupial. With the male often referred to as a ‘big red’, they successfully inhabit arid regions, thanks to an ability to survive when water is scarce. Capable of reaching speeds of up to 60 km/h, red kangaroos move with a characteristic bounding motion on muscular hind legs.