Australia 1966 Silver Obverse Uniface One Dollar Pattern
Obverse: Machin obverse of Elizabeth II to right, legend and date around
Reverse: Blank Diameter: 36.20mm | Thickness: 2.8mm | Weight: 26.42g
Purity: 95.4% silver, 4.66% copper
Provenance:
Spink Auction 20, Lot 880 (November 1986);
Spink Auction 24B, Lot 1163 (March 1988);
Noble Numismatics Auction 109, Lot 1507 (July 2015);
Noble Numismatics Auction 112, Lot 1775 (July 2016);
Noble Numismatics Auction 113, Lot 122 (November 2016)
This pattern depicts the obverse of what would have been Australia’s most valuable decimal coin and is unique in private hands.
The obverse design seen on Australia’s first decimal coins was chosen following a competition conducted by the Royal Mint in London in 1963. The sculptor Arnold Machin won that competition, his selection was announced in June 1964.[1]
On June 10th, 1964, the Australian Commonwealth Treasurer Harold Holt announced that Machin’s portrait of Queen Elizabeth II would also be seen on Australia’s new decimal coins.[2]
Holt announced another change at the same time, that the Australian Commonwealth Government had decided that the legend around Machin’s portrait would convey dignity and simplicity.
To achieve this, the lettering around Machin’s portrait was to be in English and significantly shortened. When compared to the relatively long obverse legends on Australia’s pre-decimal coins - written in Latin and referring to the Queen’s divine right to rule, the new obverse legend was indeed dignified and simple.
Confirmation that patterns of Australia’s first decimal coins were struck between 1964 and 1966 can be found in the Commonwealth Hansard, of all places. During Senate Question Time in July 1998, Senator Bill O’Chee posed a question on notice to the Minister representing the Treasurer regarding Australia’s first two-cent coins:
——
Senator O'Chee asked the Minister representing the Treasurer (Senator Kemp), upon notice, on 2 July 1998:[3]
When was the first design for the 2 cent coin approved by the Federal Government?
Who prepared the design for the 2 cent coin?
When was the design brief, or similar document requesting such a design, issued by the Federal Government?
Did the preparation of such a design entail the striking of sample coins; if so, when and where were the first sample 2 cent coins struck?
Senator Kemp (Assistant Treasurer):
“The Treasurer has provided the following answer to the honorable senator's question:
The Royal Australian Mint has advised that sample coins were struck and that samples of coins struck in different sizes, alloys, and configurations are held at the Royal Australian Mint.
These were struck at the Royal Mint London and the Royal Mint Melbourne but dates of striking are not clear from the records, which simply indicate that they were acquired in 1966.
It is thought that the first strikings were in London and probably late in 1964 or early in 1965. Production of coins commenced about March 1965.[4]”
——
The research we have done shows that the 1966 silver obverse pattern dollar was struck as an early prototype of the Machin portrait of Elizabeth II, and was viewed exclusively by key decision-makers involved with the introduction of decimal currency to Australia.
The Purest Expression of Machin’s Celebrated Portrait
When we examine the 1966 silver Australian uniface obverse pattern dollar in detail, we can see that it has a very deep relief, even when compared to the 1966 pattern 50¢. The difference between the relief of the pattern dollar and the proof and circulating 50¢ is even more pronounced.
The pattern dollar exhibits far more detail than the circulation strike - there is much more detail in the eye, nose, and mouth. The fine detail of the hair, drapery, and crown on the pattern dollar is incredibly sharp when compared to the pattern, proof, and circulating 50¢.
Both sections of the obverse legend on the pattern dollar start at 6 o’clock, and then extend upward around the portrait on either side, whereas the obverse legend on the 1966 pattern, 1966 proof, and 1966 circulation coins all start at 6, and run continuously clockwise around the entire rim.
It is evident that the lettering in the font was simplified further after the production of the obverse pattern dollar, and that the pellet was also removed from obverse legend.
The design elements seen on the 1966 proof and circulating 50¢ coins are noticeably much thicker than the fine detail seen on the pattern dollar.
We can see from the above research that the 1966 Australian silver uniface obverse pattern dollar is a dollar coin in name rather than in denomination and that its technical characteristics correspond very closely with the equivalent British uniface obverse patterns held by the Royal Collection Trust. It is clear that it captures the purest expression of Machin’s celebrated portrait, that it is unique in private hands, and is the only obverse pattern of any Australian coin available to collectors.
Rated Alongside the Most Desirable of All Australian Numismatic Items
This coin was offered for sale twice in the 1980's - in 1986 and in 1988. The auction estimates placed on the coin at that time placed it alongside the most desirable of all Australian numismatic items. The tables below compare the estimates for a small number of the key rarities in each sale, and show just how important the 1966 Australian silver uniface obverse pattern dollar was rated alongside them:
Noble Numismatics Auction 20 (November 1986)
| Lot Number |
Item |
Estimate |
| 721 |
1852 Type I Adelaide Pound EF |
$40,000 |
| 707 |
1791/4 Holey Dollar good VF |
$25,000 |
| 716 |
1887 Sydney Pattern £2 |
$25,000 |
| 722 |
1852 Type I Adelaide Pound VF |
$25,000 |
| 729 |
1855 Sydney Sovereign - Finest known |
$25,000 |
| 880 |
1966 Uniface Obverse Pattern Dollar |
$25,000 |
Noble Numismatics Auction 24B (March 1988)
| Lot Number |
Item |
Estimate |
| 1043 |
1802/2 Holey Dollar good EF |
$75,000 |
| 1384 |
1935 New Zealand Pattern Waitangi Crown |
$65,000 |
| 1035 |
1757/1 Holey Dollar VG |
$50,000 |
| 1045 |
1810 Holey Dollar about EF |
$45,000 |
| 1037 |
1786/4 Holey Dollar |
$40,000 |
| 1039 |
1789/3 Holey Dollar |
$40,000 |
Nearly all of the items listed in the above tables now command prices far, far greater than the value of the 1966 Australian silver uniface obverse pattern dollar. Despite the belief that the 1966 Australian silver uniface obverse pattern dollar was "...destined to be a classic" Australian rarity in the future along the lines of Canada's famous "dollar of 1911", it remains available today for less than the price it was offered at 20 years ago.
It remains arguably Australia's rarest and most important decimal coin.
Click here to read our full article on the history of this important Australian coin.
Footnotes:
[1] https://www.royalmint.com/discover/royalty/the-royal-portraits
[2] https://parlinfo.aph.gov.au/parlInfo/search/display/display.w3p;adv=yes;orderBy=date-eLast;page=0;query=Content%3AMachin%20Content%3Acoin%20Decade%3A%221960s%22;rec=0;resCount=Default
[3] https://parlinfo.aph.gov.au/parlInfo/search/display/display.w3p;db=CHAMBER;id=chamber%2Fhansards%2F1998-07-11%2F0177;query=(Dataset%3Aweblastweek,hansardr,noticer,webthisweek,dailyp,votes,journals,orderofbusiness,hansards,notices,websds)%20ParliamentNumber%3A%2238%22%20Responder_Phrase%3A%22kemp,%20sen%20rod%22;rec=1
[4] https://parlinfo.aph.gov.au/parlInfo/search/display/display.w3p;db=CHAMBER;id=chamber%2Fhansards%2F1998-07-11%2F0177;query=(Dataset%3Aweblastweek,hansardr,noticer,webthisweek,dailyp,votes,journals,orderofbusiness,hansards,notices,websds)%20ParliamentNumber%3A%2238%22%20Responder_Phrase%3A%22kemp,%20sen%20rod%22;rec=1
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