New Zealand 1949 1/2 penny
This specimen was lot 30250 in Heritage sale 3042 (Long Beach, September 2015), where it sold for $822.50. The catalog description[1] noted, "George VI Proof 1/2 Penny 1949 PR63 Brown PCGS. A glossy example of this first date in the series with all-over chestnut-brown color and moments of coppery-red iridescence peeking through from underneath. Well-preserved and highly-collected in this Proof designation." New Zealand did not receive her own coinage until 1933, British coins being used heretofore. Issue of pennies and half pennies did not begin until 1940. This type, with the revised obverse legend "KING GEORGE THE SIXTH," was minted 1949-52, there being no issue for 1948. All dates are common but proofs are rare. The coinage was decimalized in 1967.
Recorded mintage: 1,766,400 plus a few proofs.
Specification: 5.6 g, bronze, 25.3 mm diameter.
Catalog reference: KM 20.
- Michael, Thomas, and Tracy L. Schmidt, Standard Catalog of World Coins, 1901-2000, 47th ed., Iola, WI: Krause Publications, 2019.
- [1]Cristiano Bierrenbach, Warren Tucker and David Michaels, Heritage World Coin Auction 3042, featuring the Read and Bob Bennett Collections, Dallas, TX: Heritage Auction Galleries, 2015.
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