Unrealised Designs for the New Guinea coinage

[malj1]

The controller at the Perth Branch forwarded the following suggestions for the obverse design to Rabaul.

“I now enclose obverse designs for the contemplated cupronickel coins in New Guinea. The use of the King's name and title on the obverse is, I think, correct according to precedent and law — as well as gratifying to public taste. It is certainly convenient to the designer. In accordance with your own suggestion I have prepared an obverse with the official Commonwealth Coat of Arms. Another obverse contains devices from the King's Coat of Arms, and from the design used on the Commonwealth Coinage."

The designs submitted by the Perth Mint for the 1929 penny and halfpenny in its attempt to secure the contract for striking the proposed New Guinea Territorial coinage.
(From the original sketches in the Perth Mint Archives)

The Perth design for the penny showed a central hole surrounded by a mountain scene, with a palm tree on each side and behind, with the legend TERRITORY OF NEW GUINEA above and ONE PENNY 1929 below. The obverse had five shields around the central hole and the legend GEORGIUS V F. D. BRUT. OMN. REX ET INI) IMP. The halfpenny had for the reverse a slightly modified mountain and coastal scene and the legend COMMONWEALTH OF AUSTRALIA. MANDATORY TERRITORY OF NEW GUINEA above, and HALFPENNY in a curved ribband below. 'Ihc obverse showed the Australian coat of arms around the central hole, the date *'1929” below and a legend similar to the penny.

The order was however, to be placed at the Melbourne Branch.

Information taken from: From Cowrie to Kina by William J.D. Mira

[<k>]

These are attractive designs. Who was Rabaul?

I believe some coins of a different design were minted in 1929, which are scarcer than the versions from 1936 onward. Do you know why the set was not continued between 1929 and 1936?

[Figleaf]

Who was Rabaul?

An unlucky town with a magnificent natural harbour in Papua New Guinea.

Peter

[<k>]

So it was a place! Thank you, Figleaf.

[Figleaf]

I believe some coins of a different design were minted in 1929, which are scarcer than the versions from 1936 onward. Do you know why the set was not continued between 1929 and 1936?

The official reason to withdraw the 1929 coins was that they were too close in size to the Australian coins. This does not explain why Australian coins replaced the 1929 issue, so I suspect that it was an Australian bureaucratic power play.

Peter

[malj1]

Australian coins and banknotes were already in use in New Guinea after WW1. The two new penny and halfpennies of 1929 were made at the Melbourne mint but refused by the administrator of New Guinea at Rabaul when they arrived as the size almost corresponded with the size of the silver 6d and 1 shilling coins. A roll of 100 shillings and a roll of 100 pennies had been made and the difference could not be distinguished.

400 each of the pennies and halfpennies was issued to VIPs and collectors the rest were melted. The price was one shilling per coin.

[<k>]

Strange story - an evident lack of coordination.

[malj1]

The administrator had originally asked that they be of the same size as the 6d and one shilling coins and holed so the blame should rest on his shoulders.

[<k>]

I wonder what his reasons were.

[malj1]

Here is a further quote from the book ^ibid

Considerable correspondence look place between the Royal Mint Melbourne, the Treasury and the designer, Colonel law. The shape of the hole caused some concern; all British perforated coins had a round hole; a square hole caused technical difficulties which would add to the cost it was decided to have a round hole. The metal was to be 25 parts nickel and 75 parts copper.

On 25 May 1928 the Melbourne Branch of the Royal Mint submitted a design: "The motif of the Reverse is suggested by the art of the New guinea natives, being a reproduction of native carvings as exemplified on some of the wooden spatulas shown in one of the New Guinean cases of the Melbourne Gallery and Museum. The obverse is a rearrangement of various devices selected from British Colonial coins. The Royal Sceptres appear on the (Australian) Canberra Florin, the British Florin. 1928, and the Queen Victoria Jubilee Florin. The smaller Crowns surmounting the King's initials appear on the new British halfcrown (see London Mint Report, 1926, p 28) the preparation of the master dies (to) be entrusted to the Royal Mint London".

On 16 July 1928 the Treasury accepted these designs and informed the Mint that the issue was to be 48,000 pennies and 24,000 half pennies, The striking was authorized under the New Guinea Act. 1928 (No. 25 of 1928). An order for the dies was forwarded to England in August 1928.

Upon receipt of the designs and order, the Royal Mint London reported potential problems with the obverse and submitted "alternative sketches by Mr. Kruger Gray, rearranging the design a little". The major change was in the deletion of the King's initials, the use of one crown and repositioning of the two sceptres. The Treasury finally left the alteration in the hands of the London Advisory Committee. On 2 July 1929 the Melbourne Mint advised of the arrival of the master dies and Immediately proceeded to make the working punches. Also prepared was a schedule of tolerances within which the standard of the issue was to lie.

By 5 August 1929, two specimen pennies and two specimen half pennies had been forwarded to the Prime Minister's Department, one of each then being sent to the Administrator in New Guinea who duly acknowledged their acceptability; thus those in authority in Rabaul were manifestly aware of the final product's features.

and...

In March 1934 it was advised that the 1929 coinage would not be issued, one reason given being that this would necessitate the admission that a "bad mistake had been made by the Administration". The metal it was suggested, "could be used either for remintng or, if unsuitable, be dumped in the sea".