Australia: Coin Two Cents 1966 - detailed information

The Australian two-cent coin is the second smallest denomination coin of the Australian dollar. Coins issued in 1966 circulated for 26 years before, together with coins of the one cent denomination, they were withdrawn from circulation in February 1992. They were not demonetised though and remain legal tender.

Decimal coinage was introduced to Australia on 14 February 1966. The new denominations of one and two cent coins were to replace the halfpenny, penny and threepence denominations which had no exact equivalent in the new system (the sixpence, shilling and florin were exactly the same as the five, ten and twenty cent coins). To be prepared for C-day the Perth branch of the Royal Mint struck 108 million 1966 two cent coins in 1965 and a further 109,735,000 in 1966.

The coins bore no specific mint mark, but products of the Perth Mint can be identified by the shape of the lizard's claw immediately to the right of the artist's initials SD - on Perth Mint products this claw is blunt while on those of Canberra and Melbourne it is sharp.

Crowned and draped young bust of Queen Elizabeth II facing right (effigy known as the "Second Portrait", by Arnold Machin).

The Queen wears the "Girls of Great Britain and Ireland" diamond tiara, a wedding gift from Queen Mary (Her Majesty's grandmother) in 1947 - which she also has on the Rank-Broadley and the Gottwald portraits.

Around, the monarch's legend and the date: ELIZABETH II AUSTRALIA 1966.

The reverse features a frilled lizard with neck frill extended and mouth open, designed and sculpted by Stuart Devlin. The denomination numeral 2 [cents] is left of the lizard's head; below its body in (very) tiny letters, the designer's initials SD.