GOOD DEMAND AT LOCAL BANKS FOR CROWN PIECES
Crown pieces (5/- coins) quickly disappeared when they were released by trading banks at Whakatane on Thursday. Minted to, commemorate the Royal visit the coins were produced berore it was announced that the visit was cancelled, but after representations -were made to the Government arrangements were made to release them last week.
Every bank at Whakatane received its quota and as there were obviously not en'ough<to supply everybody, the coins were kept for, customers in most cases. Sold at their full value of 5/- the crowns=are .a brilliant shining silver and actually contain 50 per cent silver. They are a little larger than the half crown and weigh just on an ounce. The diameter is one and a-half inches exactly. The edge measures 1-8 of an inch and is milled, as are other silver coins.
There are no elaborate designs on the face" of the coin. There is the head of the King r ringed by the words "King George the Sixth" while on the other side New Zealand is represented by a fern leaf and four stars denoting the southern cross and the inscription "New .Zealand Crown 1949".
As soon as it was .learned that the crowns were being released the rush started. Inquiries were received by banks from aIL over the district, but a lot of people went away disappointed. ' One man entered one bank and after receiving one of the coins wanted to know why the face of the Minister of Finance was not on instead of the leaf.
Altogether 200,000 crowns were released, but quite a number have been retained for collectors in other countries, from whom numerous requests have been received. The 1949 crown will be the second of its kind to be issued. In 1935, to commemorate the purchase of the treaty land at Waitangi by the Governor-General, Lord Bledisloe, for the people of the Dominion, 1128 New Zealand crowns were issued. These'coins are now rare and keenly sought by collectors. -
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https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/BPB19491121.2.13
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Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 14, Issue 66, 21 November 1949, Page 5
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335GOOD DEMAND AT LOCAL BANKS FOR CROWN PIECES Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 14, Issue 66, 21 November 1949, Page 5
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