New Zealand 1954 1/2 penny
This specimen was lot 74279 in Stack's Bowers Collector's Choice sale (Costa Mesa, CA, February 2023), where it sold for $660. The catalog description[1] noted, "NEW ZEALAND. 1/2 Penny, 1954. Elizabeth II. PCGS PROOF-64 Red Brown. With incredible mint red throughout, only a few areas of purple toning keep this near-Gem from being full Red. Overall an attractive piece that should garnish much attention." 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, without a visible shoulder fold in the queen's dress, was minted 1953-55. All dates are fairly common but proofs are rare. The coinage was decimalized in 1967.
Recorded mintage: 240,000 plus proofs.
Specification: 5.6 g, bronze, 25.4 mm diameter.
Catalog reference: KM 23.1.
- Michael, Thomas, and Tracy L. Schmidt, Standard Catalog of World Coins, 1901-2000, 47th ed., Iola, WI: Krause Publications, 2019.
- [1]Orsini, Matt, Kyle Ponterio and Jeremy Bostwick, February 2023 World Collectors Choice Online Auction, featuring the David Sterling Collection, Costa Mesa, CA: Stack's Bowers Galleries, Inc., 2023.
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