The Australian penny was a coin of the Australian pound, which followed the

£sd £sd (occasionally written Lsd, spoken as "pounds, shillings and pence" or pronounced ) is the popular name for the pre-decimal currencies once common throughout Europe, especially in the British Isles and hence in several countries of the ...

system. It was 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 ...

prior to

decimalisation Decimalisation or decimalization (see spelling differences) is the conversion of a system of currency or of weights and measures to units related by powers of 10. Most countries have decimalised their currencies, converting them from non-decimal ...

in 1966. One Australian penny was worth Australian shilling, Australian florin, Australian crown, and

Australian pound The pound ( Sign: £, £A for distinction) was the currency of Australia from 1910 until 14 February 1966, when it was replaced by the Australian dollar. As with other £sd currencies, it was subdivided into 20 shillings (denoted by the symbol ...

. The coin was equivalent in its dimensions and value to the British pre-decimal

penny A penny is a coin ( pennies) or a unit of currency (pl. pence) in various countries. Borrowed from the Carolingian denarius (hence its former abbreviation d.), it is usually the smallest denomination within a currency system. Presently, it is t ...

, as the two currencies were fixed at par. The coin was introduced in 1911, while the last penny was minted in 1964. After decimalisation on 14 February 1966 the penny was equal to 0.8333 cents. The obverse of the coin featured the reigning Australian monarch. Three were featured:

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 ...

George VI George VI (Albert Frederick Arthur George; 14 December 1895 – 6 February 1952) was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth from 11 December 1936 until his death in 1952. He was also the last Emperor of I ...

and

Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 1926 – 8 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until her death in 2022. She was queen regnant of 32 sovereign states durin ...

. All of the pennies bearing George VI and Elizabeth II had a kangaroo on the reverse. The kangaroo image was on the Australian half penny and has since been included on the dollar coin and the bullion silver kangaroo. During the George VI era, coins minted at

Perth Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia. It is the fourth most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of 2.1 million (80% of the state) living in Greater Perth in 2020. Perth is ...

had a dot either at the end of the word "PENNY", after the word "AUSTRALIA" or in between the "K" and "G" above the end of the kangaroo's tail, while coins from

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/ Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a metro ...

did not have a dot. An "I" under the bust of George VI denoted being minted in

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area, the List of countries and dependencies by population, second-most populous ...

and is only found on pennies and half pennies dated 1942 and 1943. A "PL" mintmark after "PENNY" denoted minting in

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe ...

and is only found on the 1951 dated penny and half penny. This continued through the end of the coin's lifetime.

Types

Numismatics

The 1930 penny is one of the rarest Australian coins, due to a very small number being minted, and holds the record as the most valuable copper penny in the world. It is highly sought after by coin collectors, and a 1930 penny in very fine condition can be worth A$45,000 or more. Other "hard to get" years include 1925 and 1946, although they are not as valuable as the 1930 penny. Lower-grade 1925 and 1946 pennies can be obtained for under $150. There are also some valuable varieties of the Australian penny. Most varieties arose as a result of either historical events that impacted normal operation of the country's coin mints or intended changes in the coin minting processes. For example, there is a cluster of 1931 penny varieties that evidences an experimental period of penny production at the Melbourne Mint during the start of the

Great Depression The Great Depression (19291939) was an economic shock that impacted most countries across the world. It was a period of economic depression that became evident after a major fall in stock prices in the United States. The economic contagio ...

. Another example is the cluster of 1920 penny varieties that evidences the transfer of dies from the Melbourne Mint to the Sydney Mint, which involved a series of experimental strikes in preparation for the first official pennies that were struck by the Sydney Mint in October 1920. Similarly, the 1952 cluster of penny varieties arose when the

Perth Mint The Perth Mint is Australia's official bullion mint and wholly owned by the Government of Western Australia. Established on 20 June 1899, two years before Australia's Federation in 1901, the Perth Mint was the last of three Australian coloni ...

began to produce its own pennies following a series of experimental strikes. While many penny varieties are common, there are some extremely rare and valuable examples, such as the 1930 English obverse penny and the 1920 English obverse penny with a dot above the bottom scroll.

Minting figures

The numbers below include specimens and proof issues, where mintage for them is known. Counting these, a total of 814,788,088 coins of the denomination were minted during its existence. *1911: 3,768,000 *1912: 3,600,000 *1913: 2,520,000 *1914: 720,000 *1915: 2,280,000 *1916: 3,324,000 *1917: 6,240,000 *1918: 1,200,000 *1919: 5,810,160 *1920: 9,041,600 *1921: 7,438,320 *1922: 12,697,440 *1923: 5,654,400 *1924: 4,665,840 *1925: 1,639,200 *1926: 1,860,000 *1927: 4,922,450 *1928: 3,038,400 *1929: 2,599,200 *1930: unknown (usually estimated around 1600) *1931: 494,400 *1932: 2,116,800 *1933: 5,817,600 *1934: 5,808,100 *1935: 3,724,900 *1936: 9,890,400 *1937: 12 (unreleased pattern) *1938: 5,552,650 *1939: 6,240,000 *1940: 5,188,800 *1941: 14,382,800 *1942: 21,244,800 *1943: 53,198,400 *1944: 29,942,000 *1945: 15,172,806 *1946: 240,000 *1947: 11,174,400 *1948: 28,150,000 *1949: 27,064,800 *1950: 57,846,800 *1951: 52,128,000 *1952: 57,922,000 *1953: 13,138,816 *1955: 17,447,101 *1956: 25,994,917 *1957: 15,979,112 *1958: 24,443,334 *1959: 16,048,136 *1960: 20,516,230 *1961: 30,608,240 *1962: 34,852,664 *1963: 10,259,660 *1964: 64,590,000 *1965: none ever sighted

References

External links

Coins from Australia / Coin Type: Penny - Online Coin ClubOne Penny , Blue SheetHistory of the 1930 Penny
{{Australian currency Coins of Australia Australian 1911 establishments in Australia 1964 disestablishments in Australia

Types

Numismatics

Minting figures

References

Further reading

External links