A Proclamation Commemorative

To recognize the 225th anniversary of the Australian Proclamation coins, the Perth Mint has released three commemoratives. The reverse of each coin pays homage to the Spanish Pillar dollar, also known as a peso or a piece of eight. The design features the Spanish crown above two hemispheres (representing the Old World and the New World) between the pillars of Hercules. A banner appears on each pillar, displaying the text PLVS VLTRA (“more beyond”). The legend VTRAQUE (“both are one”) frames the central design, along with the year (2025) and the Mexico City mintmark. The obverse features King Charles III’s effigy. The commemoratives are available in 1-ounce and ¹/₄-ounce gold proof versions, as well as a 1-ounce silver proof version.

When the United Kingdom established a penal colony in Australia, it had no official currency. Instead, coins in the colony came from the pockets of officers, prisoners, and sailors who settled there, resulting in a range of world currencies that circulated throughout the country. In 1800 Governor Philip Gidley King made a proclamation to fix a value on the various coins in the colony, creating the Australian Proclamation coins. However, there was still a shortage of coins in Australia. In 1813 the British government sent 40,000 Spanish reales to Australia, and Governor Lachlan Macquarie ordered a hole to be punched in the center of each real, making Australia’s “holey dollars” (the outer rings) and “dumps” (the centers). It wasn’t until 1825 that the English Parliament established British coins as the official currency of the colony.