On June 1, 1973, the British colony of

British Honduras British Honduras was a British Crown colony on the east coast of Central America, south of Mexico, from 1783 to 1964, then a self-governing colony, renamed Belize in June 1973,

changed its name to

Belize Belize (; bzj, Bileez) is a Caribbean and Central American country on the northeastern coast of Central America. It is bordered by Mexico to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the east, and Guatemala to the west and south. It also shares a wate ...

, but its status remained unchanged until 1981, when Belize was granted independence.

Coins of the Colony of Belize (1973–80)

The coins of the Colony of Belize retain the same basic designs as on the coins of British Honduras, but with the country's name changed to "Belize". These coins were struck at the

Royal Mint The Royal Mint is the United Kingdom's oldest company and the official maker of British coins. Operating under the legal name The Royal Mint Limited, it is a limited company that is wholly owned by His Majesty's Treasury and is under an exclus ...

Llantrisant Llantrisant (; "Parish of the Three Saints") is a town in the county borough of Rhondda Cynon Taf, within the historic county boundaries of Glamorgan, Wales, lying on the River Ely and the Afon Clun. The three saints of the town's name are SS ...

. A series of

numismatic Numismatics is the study or collection of currency, including coins, tokens, paper money, medals and related objects. Specialists, known as numismatists, are often characterized as students or collectors of coins, but the discipline also includ ...

coins, depicting the Belizean Coat-of-Arms on the

obverse Obverse and its opposite, reverse, refer to the two flat faces of coins and some other two-sided objects, including paper money, flags, seals, medals, drawings, old master prints and other works of art, and printed fabrics. In this usage, ''o ...

instead of the Queen's portrait, were struck at the

Franklin Mint The Franklin Mint is a private mint founded by Joseph Segel in 1964 in Wawa, Pennsylvania. The building is in Middletown Township. The brand name was previously owned by Sequential Brands Group headquartered in New York City, New York. It is ...

. These coins were generally intended for American collectors, however, and did not circulate in Belize.

Coins of Belize (1981–)

The coins of the 1981 issue are regarded by collectors as being the first official coins of Belize. Most coins since independence have been struck at the Royal Mint, and still bear the British Honduras-style coin designs. Queen Elizabeth II, the Queen in right of Belize, is still featured on Belizean coins facing right and wearing the heraldic Tudor Crown.

Post independence coins

File:Belize05cent2009obv.jpg, Five-cent coin obverse, though similar in size the shape distinguishes it from the one cent coin File:Belize05cent2009rev.jpg, Five-cent coin reverse, made of aluminum File:Belize10centobv1981.jpg, Ten-cent coin obverse, smaller size and reeded edge distinguishes it from the five cent coin File:Belize10cent1981rev.jpg, Ten-cent coin reverse File:Belize25centobv2003.jpg, Twenty-five-cent coin obverse, larger size distinguishes this coin from the ten cent coin File:Belize25cent2003rev.jpg, Twenty-five-cent coin reverse

Gallery

File:Bel i.jpg, Reverse of modern Belize coins File:BLZ003.JPG, 1975 10-cent coin File:BLZ004.JPG, 1974 25-cent coin File:BLZ001.JPG, 1991 50-cent coin. As seen here, coins have not drastically changed since Belize's independence in 1981. File:BLZ007.JPG, Comparison of British Honduras and Belize one-cent coins. Both types of coins share the same obverse and a very similar reverse File:BLZ008.JPG, Commemorative 1991 ten-dollar coin celebrating the tenth anniversary of independence.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Coins Of The Belize Dollar