Norway, World War 2, government-in-exile coinage

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Government-in-exile coins.

According to the Royal Mint documents at Kew, the original pre-war Norwegian 10, 25 and 50 øre coins were made of copper-nickel. Since nickel was in short supply because of the war, the Norwegian government-in-exile compromised and agreed to have the coins made of brass. Additionally, the Norwegians wanted the usual Norwegian mint mark to be omitted since the coins were being minted in London. They also wanted the date, 1942, to be larger and displayed more prominently.

10 øre, pre-war design.

25 øre, pre-war design.

50 øre, pre-war design.

Above, you see the pre-war designs, to make comparison easier.

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The Norwegian government-in-exile ordered the coins from the Royal Mint in June 1942, and they were delivered in late October 1942 to Waterlow and Sons, London. The war-time address of the Norwegian Ministry of Finance (government-in-exile) was Kingston House, Princes Gate, London SW7.

The coins were intended for use in Norway after the liberation. They were shipped to Norway in 1945. However, the coins were not needed, so they were kept in storage in Norway. In 1953 the Norwegians asked the Royal Mint if they could return the coins to be melted down. The coins were shipped from Oslo, on board the merchant ship "The Truro", on 9th June 1953. There were 22 tons of coins contained in 667 cases. The Royal Mint paid the Norwegians £190 per ton, which amounted to a total payment of £4158. Evidently, the Norwegians kept a few of the coins, as some of them were sold as special sets after the war.

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Norway, 50 øre, 1940.

Looking at the three interlocking rings at either side of the coin above (top left).

I wonder if they have any significance. They seem to appear on quite a few Norwegian coins.

[Figleaf]

It's a valknut.

Peter

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Thanks, Figgers. So it's one of those old pagan things, like runes.

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See also:  Norway under Nazi occupation.