The Australian florin was a coin used in the

Commonwealth of Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands. With an area of , Australia is the largest country by ...

before decimalisation in 1966. The florin was worth two shillings (24 pence, or one-tenth of a pound). The denomination was first minted in 1910 to the same size and weight as the United Kingdom florin. Florins minted from 1910 to 1945 were produced with a .925

sterling silver Sterling silver is an alloy of silver containing 92.5% by weight of silver and 7.5% by weight of other metals, usually copper. The sterling silver standard has a minimum millesimal fineness of 925. '' Fine silver'', which is 99.9% pure silver, i ...

content, weighing with an actual silver weight (ASW) of . Florins minted from 1946 to 1963 were produced with a .500 silver content (50% silver), weighing 11.31 grams with an ASW of . The coin was minted until 1963, with some years omitted: no florins were minted in 1920, 1929–30, 1937, 1948–50 and 1955. Also, commemorative florins were issued for the following years: 1927, 1934–35, 1951, and 1954. Two different designs were issued in each of the commemorative years (the "regular" approved issue plus the specially approved memorial designs). Also, no coins of any denomination were issued in 1965, as all minting was shut down in preparation for decimalisation. During World War II, between 1942–1944, florin production was supplemented by coinage produced at the San Francisco branch of the

United States Mint The United States Mint is a bureau of the Department of the Treasury responsible for producing coinage for the United States to conduct its trade and commerce, as well as controlling the movement of bullion. It does not produce paper money; tha ...

. These coins bear a small "S"

mint mark A mint mark is a letter, symbol or an inscription on a coin indicating the mint where the coin was produced. It should not be confused with a mintmaster mark which is the mark of the mintmaster. History Mint marks were first developed to locate ...

below the Australian coat of arms. The image on the reverse of the coin was the coat of arms of Australia (except for commemorative coins). This comes in two forms, all with the

kangaroo Kangaroos are four marsupials from the family Macropodidae (macropods, meaning "large foot"). In common use the term is used to describe the largest species from this family, the red kangaroo, as well as the antilopine kangaroo, eastern ...

emu The emu () (''Dromaius novaehollandiae'') is the second-tallest living bird after its ratite relative the ostrich. It is endemic to Australia where it is the largest native bird and the only extant member of the genus '' Dromaius''. The emu ...

and the shield containing the coat of arms. Those issued between 1910 and 1936 have a seven-pointed star above the coat of arms, and the

Southern Cross Crux () is a constellation of the southern sky that is centred on four bright stars in a cross-shaped asterism commonly known as the Southern Cross. It lies on the southern end of the Milky Way's visible band. The name ''Crux'' is Latin for ...

constellation within the shield. Those issued between 1938 and 1963, inclusive, have the royal crown above, the six states represented in the shield and a

golden wattle ''Acacia pycnantha'', most commonly known as the golden wattle, is a tree of the family Fabaceae native to southeastern Australia. It grows to a height of and has phyllodes (flattened leaf stalks) instead of true leaves. Sickle-shaped, these ...

plant as a background. When Australia decimalised officially, on 14 February 1966, the florin was equal to 20 cents.

Circulation types

Commemorative florins

Image:1927-Australian-florin-reverse.JPG, Reverse of the 1927 Australian florin commemorating the opening of the original Parliament House. Designed by

George Kruger Gray George Edward Kruger Gray (25 December 1880 – 2 May 1943) was an English artist, best remembered for his designs of coinage and stained glass windows. Personal life Kruger was born in 1880 at 126 Kensington Park Road, London, the son of a Je ...

. Image:1927-Australian-florin-obverse.JPG,

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, ...

of the commemorative 1927 Australian florin, with

King George V George V (George Frederick Ernest Albert; 3 June 1865 – 20 January 1936) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 until his death in 1936. Born during the reign of his grandmother Qu ...

. Designed by

. Image:1934-35-Australian-florin-reverse.JPG, Reverse of the 1934–35 Australian florin commemorating the centenary of Melbourne, capital of Victoria. Designed by

. Image:1934-35-Australian-florin-obverse.JPG, Obverse of the commemorative 1934–35 Australian florin, with King George V, designed by

Percy Metcalfe Percy Metcalfe, CVO, RDI (14 January 1895 Wakefield – 9 October 1970 Fulham Hospital, Hammersmith, London), (often spelled ''Metcalf'' without "e") was an English artist, sculptor and designer. He is recognised mostly for his coin designs a ...

. Image:1951-australian florin-reverse.jpg, Reverse of the 1951 Australian florin commemorating the jubilee of Federation of Australia. Designed by

William Leslie Bowles William Leslie Bowles (26 February 1885 at Leichhardt, Sydney, Australia – 21 February 1954 at Frankston, Victoria) was an Australian sculptor and medallist. Education He started at Kangaroo Point State School, Brisbane. After studyi ...

. Image:1951-Australian-florin-obverse.JPG, Obverse of the 1951 Australian florin, with King George VI, designed by Thomas Humphrey Paget. Image:1954-royal-visit-reverse.jpg, Reverse of the 1954 Australian florin commemorating the first visit of a reigning monarch to Australia, designed by Leslie Bowles. Image:1954-royal-visit-obverse.jpg, Obverse of the commemorative 1954 Australian florin, with Queen Elizabeth II, designed by Mary Gillick.

Mintmarks

* H : Birmingham * M : Melbourne * S : San Francisco

References

* *
Florins article on Cruzis Coins

External links

Online Coin Club / Coins from Australia / Coin Type: Florin

Florin , Blue Sheet

{{Australian currency Currencies introduced in 1910 Coins of Australia 1910 establishments in Australia 1963 disestablishments in Australia