How much gold is in a standard Australian 1 Dollar coin?

Answer 1

Australia has never produced a Sovereign or Half-Sovereign coin as a part of its currency.

Prior to Federation, the Australian colonies produced Sovereign and Half-Sovereign coins for Britain during the later part of the 19th Century, from about 1870.

Also, Sovereign and Half-Sovereign coins were produced at the newly opened Sydney branch of the Royal Mint in about 1855 with the word AUSTRALIA on the reverse. It should be noted that at this period of history, Australia was a very loose confederation of Colonies governed from Britain. Australia had not yet become a country and did not have its own currency.

Irrespective of the Mint or location, "Australian" Sovereigns weigh in at 7.9881 grams, are 1.52 mm thick, have a diameter of 21.05 mm, fineness is 22 carat or 91.67% gold, and the gold content is 7.3224 grams, as per the British standard.

Answer 2

There has never been a circulating "Australian" Sovereign coin since Australia got the first installment of its own currency in 1910.

The Sydney, Melbourne and Perth Mints were established at different times during the 19th Century as colonial outposts for the Royal Mint, London. Sovereign and Half-Sovereign coins were minted in Australia for Britain and to the British pattern, and had no reference to Australia on them. They were circulated locally to relieve the pressure on the London Mint and to avoid having to send the gold to England and then bring the currency back.

Sovereigns and Half-Sovereigns minted at the Sydney Mint for local use from 1853 to 1870 had "Sydney Mint" and "Australia" inscribed on them, but Australia did not exist as much more than a loose affiliation of British colonies. The loose affiliation got a little tighter in the 1890's, until Federation in 1901.

When Australia got its own currency in 1910, the Sovereigns and Half-Sovereigns continued to be minted at the Sydney, Melbourne and Perth Mints until 1931, but were minted to the British pattern and had no reference to Australia on them, other than the Mint marks (S for Sydney, M for Melbourne and P for Perth). These are British coins despite the fact that they were minted in Australia.

The "Australia - Sydney Mint" Sovereigns and Half-Sovereigns were minted from 1855 to 1870 and have "Australia" and "Sydney Mint" clearly inscribed on the reverse. Australian Sovereigns, depending on their condition, could fetch anything from $400 to $135,000 AUD.

Any Sovereign or Half-Sovereign coin, other than those with "Australia - Sydney Mint" on them, are British Coins.

Answer 3

None. No circulating Australian coin has any precious metal content.

The Australian One Dollar coin is made from an aluminium-bronze alloy giving it a dirty gold appearance.

The Australian One and Two Dollar are coins are often referred to as "gold" coins in the same way that the 50, 20, 10 and 5 cent coins are referred to as "silver" coins.

Answer 4

There are no Australian Sovereigns dated 1900. There are British Sovereigns minted at either the Melbourne Mint (M), the Perth Mint (P) or the Sydney Mint (S).

At a current gold price of A$1,675, the vast majority of them will be worth A$390 - $475 each. A British Sovereign struck at the Perth Mint in 1900 and still in "mint" (uncirculated or better) condition, will retail for over A$1,000.

Answer 5

The highly sought after sovereign is a gold coin of the United Kingdom and is known to fluctuate in price. As with all gold coins the price can vary due to the price of gold at the time and the percentage of gold contained in the actual sovereign

Answer 6

Other than 1999 when the Perth Mint produced a Sovereign commemorating the Centenary of the Perth Mint, the Royal Australian Mint has not produced a Sovereign coin.