Australia (1943) shilling
This specimen was lot 44033 in Stack's Bowers ANA sale (Costa Mesa, CA, August 2021), where it sold for $900. The catalog description[1] noted, "AUSTRALIA. Internment Camp Shilling, ND (1943). PCGS MS-64 Brown Gold Shield. A pleasing, sharply struck little coin, with a lustrous sheen visible on the surfaces, and red-brick patina throughout." This is from a series produced for internment camps (for German prisoners) which ranged from a penny to five shillings, all in bronze. Varieties exist, including specimens with misplaced or missing holes. Wikipedia mentions nineteen internment camps operated in Australia during World War Two and we don't know which one(s) used these tokens.
Recorded mintage: unknown.
Specification: bronze.
Catalog reference: KM-Tn3.
- Michael, Thomas, and Tracy L. Schmidt, Standard Catalog of World Coins, 1901-2000, 47th ed., Iola, WI: Krause Publications, 2019.
- McDonald, Greg, The Pocket Guide to Australian Coins and Banknotes, 23rd ed., Lavington, Australia, 2017.
- Pitt, Michael, ed., Renniks Australian Coin and Banknote Values, 32nd Edition, Matraville, New South Wales, Australia: Renniks Publications, 2023.
- [1]Orsini, Matt, Kyle Ponterio and Jeremy Bostwick, The August 2021 ANA sale: World and Ancient Coins, Costa Mesa, CA: Stack's Bowers LLC, 2021.
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