December 9, 2011
Undated New Zealand 2c/Bahama Islands 5c Mule
In 1967 a careless mistake by a Royal Mint worker saw the birth of a rare mule coin. A copper 2c piece of New Zealand bears the undated obverse of a Bahamas 5 cent, an obverse which should have been struck on a copper nickel blank. The reverse is the New Zealand kowhai blossom designed by Reginald George James Berry known as James Berry who designed the reverses of all the new decimal coins of New Zealand, his initials JB appear on the coin. The obverse is the Arnold Machin portrait of Queen Elizabeth II with the country of Bahama Islands instead of New Zealand. The date on a New Zealand coin should appear below the portrait but does not appear on the Bahamas obverse leaving the coin undated.
80,000 of these error coins -a late afternoon die run (Friday if I may postulate) were minted after a working die from a run of Bahama Islands 5c was left in the coining press and was not changed for an evening run of New Zealand coins at the Royal Mint at Tower Hill. Now new coins churn out of a press at a staggering rate but the error went unnoticed and the coins were packed and sent to Wellington, New Zealand to be distibuted at decimal changeover on 10th July 1967. Within hours of the new currency circulating the accidental pairing had been discovered.
The Royal Mint at Tower Hill in London had been minting coins since (circa) 1810 and was under tremendous load at the time minting coins for many different countries and ex-colonies some of which were moving to decimalisation. This included Australia when London minted new 5c, 10c and 20c for Australia's change to decimal currency in 1966. Their equipment was becoming tired and there was a shortage of staff and it has been suggested that the making of the New Zealand Bahamas mule was a deliberate industrial protest by workers and not a simple forgetful accident. They did manage through strong coincidence to strike these coins, send them away and release them into circulation without the error being detected.
Of the 80,000 coins struck 68,000 were withdrawn by New Zealand treasury when the mistake was found resulting in an estimated 6,000-12,000 coins in collectors hands. After all they are technically not legal tender new Zealand coins!
Posted by harrisk at December 9, 2011 12:51 PM
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