Silver Ounce 2018 British Trade Dollar, Coin from Saint Helena - detailed information

Saint Helena is a small island in the South Atlantic Ocean which is part of the British overseas territory of Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha. The currency of the island is the Saint Helena pound, fixed at parity with the pound sterling. The island has authorised some private mints to issue coins under its jurisdiction, which come in a variety of sizes - including in the popular silver ounce (1 oz silver) format, usually denominated as £1.

The 2018 1 oz St Helena British Trade Dollar Silver Coin is part of a range dedicated to "trade dollars" and is inspired by the British Trade Dollar issued between 1895 and 1935 (also known as a "Hong Kong Dollar").

The Mint says about this coin:
First issued in 1895, the British Trade Dollar weighed approximately 27g and was minted in 0.900 silver to mirror the specification of the Spanish Dollar, the international trade coin of the time. It depicted for the first time a standing figure of Britannia holding a trident and British shield with a merchant ship in the background designed by Royal Mint engraver George William De Saulles. This magnificent coin was to become a symbol of the vast British trade with the Orient.

The need for a coin unrelated to a foreign country’s mint or silver supplies, which could be minted on demand, allowed British merchants to take advantage of the silk, porcelain spice and tea trade in the Orient which flourished at the end of the First Opium War. The British Trade Dollar was just the second coin minted by the British purely for international trade, after the Portcullis Money or Testern silver coin of 1601, issued by Queen Elizabeth I for The East India Companies first voyage to the East.