The Australian florin was a coin used in the

Commonwealth of Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and numerous smaller islands. It has a total area of , making it the sixth-largest country in ...

before

decimalisation Decimalisation or decimalization (see American and British English spelling differences, spelling differences) is the conversion of a system of currency or of weights and measures to units related by Power of 10, powers of 10. Most countries have ...

in 1966. The florin was worth two

shilling The shilling is a historical coin, and the name of a unit of modern currency, currencies formerly used in the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, other British Commonwealth countries and Ireland, where they were generally equivalent to 1 ...

s (24

pence A penny is a coin (: pennies) or a unit of currency (: pence) in various countries. Borrowed from the Carolingian denarius (hence its former abbreviation d.), it is usually the smallest denomination within a currency system. At present, it is t ...

, or one-tenth of a

pound Pound or Pounds may refer to: Units * Pound (currency), various units of currency * Pound sterling, the official currency of the United Kingdom * Pound (mass), a unit of mass * Pound (force), a unit of force * Rail pound, in rail profile * A bas ...

). The denomination was first minted in 1910 to the same size and weight as the British florin. Australia - Florin 1942 S - Georgius VI

Florins minted from 1910 to 1945 were produced with a .925

sterling silver Sterling silver is an alloy composed mass fraction (chemistry), by weight of 92.5% silver and 7.5% other metals, usually copper. The sterling silver silver standards, standard has a minimum millesimal fineness of 925. ''Fineness, Fine silver'' ...

content, weighing with an actual silver weight (ASW) of . Florins minted from 1946 to 1963 were produced with a .500 silver content (50% silver), weighing 11.31 grams with an ASW of . The coin was minted until 1963, with some years omitted: no florins were minted in 1920, 1929–30, 1937, 1948–50 and 1955. Also, commemorative florins were issued for the following years: 1927, 1934–35, 1951, and 1954. Two different designs were issued in each of the commemorative years (the "regular" approved issue plus the specially approved memorial designs). Also, no coins of any denomination were issued in 1965, as all minting was shut down in preparation for decimalisation. During World War II, between 1942 and 1944, florin production was supplemented by coinage produced at the San Francisco branch of the

United States Mint The United States Mint is a bureau of the United States Department of the Treasury, Department of the Treasury responsible for producing coinage for the United States to conduct its trade and commerce, as well as controlling the movement of bull ...

. These coins bear a small "S"

mint mark A mint mark is a letter, symbol or an inscription on a coin indicating the mint where the coin was produced. It is distinct from a mintmaster mark, the mark of the mintmaster. History Mint marks were first developed to locate a problem. If a co ...

below the Australian coat of arms. The image on the reverse of the coin was the

coat of arms of Australia The coat of arms of Australia, officially the Commonwealth Coat of Arms, is a formal symbol of the Commonwealth of Australia. It depicts a shield, containing symbols of Australia's six states, and is held up by native Australian animals, the ka ...

(except for commemorative coins). This comes in two forms, all with the

kangaroo Kangaroos are marsupials from the family Macropodidae (macropods, meaning "large foot"). In common use, the term is used to describe the largest species from this family, the red kangaroo, as well as the antilopine kangaroo, eastern gre ...

emu The emu (; ''Dromaius novaehollandiae'') is a species of flightless bird endemism, endemic to Australia, where it is the Tallest extant birds, tallest native bird. It is the only extant taxon, extant member of the genus ''Dromaius'' and the ...

and the shield containing the coat of arms. Those issued between 1910 and 1936 have a seven-pointed star above the coat of arms, and the

Southern Cross CRUX is a lightweight x86-64 Linux distribution targeted at experienced Linux users and delivered by a tar.gz-based package system with BSD-style initscripts. It is not based on any other Linux distribution. It also utilizes a ports system to ...

constellation within the shield. Those issued between 1938 and 1963, inclusive, have the royal crown above, the six states represented in the shield and a

golden wattle ''Acacia pycnantha'', most commonly known as the golden wattle, is a tree of the family Fabaceae. It grows to a height of and has phyllodes (flattened leaf stalks) instead of true leaves. The profuse fragrant, golden flowers appear in late ...

plant as a background. When Australia decimalised officially, on 14 February 1966, the florin was equal to 20 cents.

Circulation types

Commemorative florins

Image:1927-Australian-florin-reverse.JPG, Reverse of the 1927 Australian florin commemorating the opening of the original Parliament House. Designed by

George Kruger Gray George Edward Kruger Gray (25 December 1880 – 2 May 1943) was an English artist, best remembered for his designs of coinage and stained glass windows. Personal life Kruger was born in 1880 at 126 Kensington Park Road, London, the son of a ...

. Image:1927-Australian-florin-obverse.JPG,

Obverse The obverse and reverse are the two flat faces of coins and some other two-sided objects, including paper money, flags, seals, medals, drawings, old master prints and other works of art, and printed fabrics. In this usage, ''obverse'' ...

of the commemorative 1927 Australian florin, with

King George V George V (George Frederick Ernest Albert; 3 June 1865 – 20 January 1936) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 until his death in 1936. George was born during the reign of his pa ...

. Designed by

. Image:1934-35-Australian-florin-reverse.JPG, Reverse of the non-circulated 1934–35 Australian florin commemorating the centenary of Melbourne, capital of Victoria. Designed by

. Image:1934-35-Australian-florin-obverse.JPG, Obverse of the commemorative 1934–35 Australian florin, with King George V, designed by

Percy Metcalfe Percy Metcalfe, CVO, RDI (14 January 1895 Wakefield – 9 October 1970 Fulham Hospital, Hammersmith, London), (often spelled ''Metcalf'' without "e") was an English artist, sculptor and designer. He is recognised mostly for his coin designs ...

. Image:1951-australian florin-reverse.jpg, Reverse of the 1951 Australian florin commemorating the jubilee of Federation of Australia. Designed by William Leslie Bowles. Image:1951-Australian-florin-obverse.JPG, Obverse of the 1951 Australian florin, with King George VI, designed by

Thomas Humphrey Paget Thomas Humphrey Paget OBE (13 August 1893 – 30 April 1974) was an English medal and coin designer and modeller. Paget's designs are indicated by the initials 'HP'. Paget was first approached by the Royal Mint in 1936 after the accession of K ...

. Image:1954-royal-visit-reverse.jpg, Reverse of the 1954 Australian florin commemorating the first visit of a reigning monarch to Australia, designed by Leslie Bowles. Image:1954-royal-visit-obverse.jpg, Obverse of the commemorative 1954 Australian florin, with

Queen Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 19268 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until Death and state funeral of Elizabeth II, her death in 2022. ...

, designed by

Mary Gillick Mary Gaskell Gillick ( Tutin; 1881 – 27 January 1965) was a sculptor and medallist, best known for her effigy of Elizabeth II used on coinage in the United Kingdom and elsewhere from 1953 to 1970. Personal life Born Mary Gaskell Tutin in No ...

Mintmarks

* H : Birmingham * M : Melbourne * S : San Francisco

References

* *
Florins article on Cruzis Coins

External links

Online Coin Club / Coins from Australia / Coin Type: Florin

Florin , Blue Sheet

{{Australian currency Currencies introduced in 1910 Coins of Australia 1910 establishments in Australia 1963 disestablishments in Australia