Introduction to collecting coins from The Perth Mint
Collecting coins made by The Perth Mint is a rewarding pastime for many people. There’s certainly a diverse range of historic and modern commemoratives to choose from.
The first coins made in Perth were gold sovereigns. Featuring our distinctive ‘P’ mintmark, more than 100 million were produced between 1899 and 1931. Even so, completing a full set can be a challenging prospect to even the most experienced collector.
Australian pre-decimal coins made in Perth include silver shillings, pennies and half-pennies. Later, the Mint prepared the way for decimalisation in 1966 with vast numbers of 1 cent and 2 cents coins, which stayed in circulation until 1992.
There was a momentous shift in emphasis in the 1980s, however, when the Australian Government authorised The Perth Mint to produce the nation’s official precious metal coin program.
The first coin to be made under the agreement was the famous Australian Nugget. As well as being offered in unpackaged, bullion quality for investors, an extremely limited number of stunning proof quality versions were released in special presentation packaging for collectors.
The silver Australian Kookaburra was the second series to be issued in what has subsequently become one of the most extensive ranges of modern collectable coins in the world.
Today, The Perth Mint releases new collector coins every month. Keeping up with the all themes, innovations, sizes, metals and mintages, not to mention sell-outs, near sell-outs and special offers is quite a challenge – but our website, newsletters and bulletins are here to help!
