Did You Know Series (39): Quilling Art: Coins issued by Cook Islands:(I) The first Coin in the Series – Quilling Art – Flowers (2016): (II) The second Coin in the Series – Quilling Art – Bird ( 2017):

Did You Know Series (39): Quilling Art: Coins issued by Cook Islands: (I) The first Coin in the Series – Quilling Art – Flowers (2016): (II) The second Coin in the Series – Quilling Art – Bird (2017): 

Quilling Art or Paper filigree is an art form which involves the skilful  use of strips of paper that are rolled, shaped and glued together to create wonderful, vibrant and decorative designs.

The designs and the process:

The paper is rolled, looped, curled, twisted and manipulated to create shapes which make up designs to decorate greeting cards, scrapbook pages, pictures, boxes, eggs and to make models, flowers, jewellery and decorative items etc.

                        A Quilled Art flower - Daisy

Quilling is found in several Art galleries in Europe & Asia and is an art practiced all over the world.

Quilling begins with rolling a strip of paper into a coil and then pinching the coil into shapes that can be glued together.

Advanced techniques and different sized paper are used to make 3D Miniatures, Abstract Art and Quilled flowers et al.

                                       A 3D Quilled Lion art work
Quilling is a great craft for children to train their hand-eye coordination.

The tools required are – a slotted tool, needle tool, tweezers, circle sizer tool, curling coach, Crimper tool et al.

The choice of Quilling paper used comes in over 250 different colours and dimensions. It can be divided into various categories, for eg: Quilling paper, graduated Quilling paper, two-toned Quilling paper, acid free Quilling paper, and other assorted parcels of Quilling paper. The usual sizes are – 1/8 inches, ¼ inches and 3/8 broad paper parcels.

                      A chart showing various Quilling shapes
 Historically:

During the Renaissance, Quilling Art was used to decorate book covers. The paper most commonly used was strips of paper trimmed from gilded edges of books. These gilded paper strips were then rolled to create the Quilled shapes. Quilling often imitated the original iron work during this period.

In the 18^th Century, Quilling became popular when women across the world took to this art form in a big way.

The Quilled Art forms of this period included works on cabinets and stands, cribbage boards, ladies purses, pictures and frames, baskets, tea cosies/caddies, Coats of Arms, wine and tea coasters, storage boxes et al.

Present day:

Quilling has witnessed a resurgence in popularity with Quilling enthusiasts and artists in every walk of life.

Quilling is popular among all classes of people as an art form and newer designs because of multiple innovations have made it a rapidly growing and popular art form. The simplicity of techniques and the low cost of the materials required have added to its allure.

Quilling is impressive proof that everyday materials can be turned into artworks. Artists like Yulia Brodskaya and Lisa Nilsson display their works, which often cover large areas with paper stripes rolled up into a multitude of shapes, in museums and galleries.

 (I)The first Coin in the Series – Quilling Art – Flowers (issued in 2016):

The first coin of this popular Series minted with smartminting technology has combined elaborate handmade Quilling with the highest minting craftsmanship by Coin Invest Trust. Silver relief and colourful paper elements blend to form a floral design, which has been placed on a coin for the first time. Every specimen of this edition is unique with hand-crafted paper work.

                   The Reverse of the 2016 Silver 2 Dollars coin
On the Reverse of the Silver 2 Dollars Coin on the outer periphery is seen an intricate, artistic and ornamental border. Just below the outer periphery is the theme “QUILLING ART”, below which are two coloured flowers with stems and leaves in a finish created to give the impression of having been made through Quilling Art work.

                  The Obverse of the 2016 Silver 2 Dollar coin
On the Obverse of the Silver 2 Dollars Coin on the upper periphery is mentioned “ELIZABETH II, COOK ISLANDS”. On the lower periphery is the denominational value of the coin “2 DOLLARS”. In the centre is QEII’s portrait facing right, designed by Ian Rank-Broadley, whose initials feature below the Queen’s neck.

The specifications of this coin are:

Name of Issuing Country: Cook Islands; Year of issue: 2016; Denominational value: 2 Dollars; Metallic Composition: .999 Silver; Weight: ½ Ounce; Size: 50.0 mm; Coin Quality: Proof; Mintage Limit: 999 pieces. Minted by: B. H. Mayer’s Kunstprageanstalt GmbH - Coin Invest Trust (CIT), minted with smartminting technology.

The transparent protective cover in which the coin is encased

 The stylised wooden box with a Quilling paper design in which the coin is placed. It is titled Quilling Art 'Flowers' 2016

(II) The second Coin in the Series – Quilling Art – Bird (issued in 2017):

The 2017 Silver 2 Dollars coin against the backdrop of Quilling Art

The 2017 issue of this popular Series depicts a bird on a coin surface minted with smartminting technology. The bird is sitting on a tree whose two leaves are made with Quilling technique just like the bird. Every specimen of this edition is unique with hand-crafted paper work.

                    The Reverse of the 2017 Silver 2 Dollars coin

On the Reverse of the Silver 2 Dollars Coin on the outer periphery is seen an intricate, artistic and ornamental border. Just below the outer periphery is the theme “QUILLING ART”, below which is a tri-coloured bird facing left on the branch of a stylised tree. Both bird and the two leaves are made with paper Quilling technique. The year of issue is inscribed as “2017” above an engraved linear branch showing an engraved bird.

                The Obverse of the 2017 Silver 2 Dollars coin
On the Obverse of the Silver 2 Dollars Coin on the upper periphery is mentioned “ELIZABETH II, COOK ISLANDS”. On the lower periphery is the denominational value of the coin “2 DOLLARS”. In the centre is QEII’s portrait facing right, designed by Ian Rank-Broadley, whose initials feature below the Queen’s neck.

The specifications of this coin are:

Name of Issuing Country: Cook Islands; Year of issue: 2016; Denominational value: 2 Dollars; Metallic Composition: .999 Silver; Weight: ½ Ounce; Size: 50.0 mm; Coin Quality: Proof; Mintage Limit: 999 pieces. Minted by: B. H. Mayer’s Kunstprageanstalt GmbH - Coin Invest Trust (CIT), minted with smartminting technology.

 The 2017 Coin comes in this elegant stylised wooden box painted in the Quilling Art design. It is titled "2017 Quilling Art"

Posted on 30.06.2017:

A Quilling Art quaint articles exhibition stall of items made by young students, where Sumita is helping out today . The proceeds will go to charity.

Links to Posts on Australia, New Zealand and countries and Overseas Territories of the South Pacific on this blog:

1) Bank of Papua New Guinea: 36th Anniversary Celebrations (1973-2008): A Commemorative Uncirulated Coin Set consisting of a 2 Kina Banknote & a 2 Kina Coin

2) Papua New Guinea: An uncirculated coin set brought out in 1995 commemorating the 20th Anniversary of Independence 

 3) Currency & Coinage of the Soloman Islands: Dollars and Cents

4) New Zealand: New Banknote "Seventh Series" issued under Project "Brighter Money" from 2015 onwards

5) Coinage of the French Polynesian Island of Caledonia (or Nouvelle Caledonie) the CFP Franc  

6) French Institution for issuing uniform currency/coinage for French Overseas Territories in the Pacific and the French Southern Territories of Antarctica: The Institut d'emmission d'outre Mer (IEOM)

7) Currency & Coinage of Samoa: Tala and Sene 

8) Currency of the South Pacific Island Country of Fiji 

9) Coinage of New Zealand: A commemorative coin set issued in 1979 

10) Currency and Coinage of Australia: Dollars and Cents 

11) The Australian Emblem or the Coat of Arms 

12) The story of the Australian Penny 

13) The Legend of the Mutiny on the Bounty: A Commemorative Coin Set from the Pitcairn Islands depicting relics from the Bounty issued in 2009 

14) An Australian $5 coin issued in 1996, commemorating Australia's greatest cricketing legend - Sir Donald Bradman 

15) New Series/Generation of Australian Banknotes being introduced from 01.09.2016 onwards starting from $5 issues 

16) Southern Lights: A $1 Silver holographic coin issued by the Reserve Bank of New Zealand in January 2017

Links to interesting posts on coins from Tuvalu Islands: 

1)Famous Pirates of the Caribbean :2) Edward Teach or "BlackBeard"

2)Famous Pirates of the Caribbean: 3)Bartholomew Roberts or Black Bart Roberts 
  
 3)Famous Pirates of the Caribbean:4)Jack Rackham 

4)Famous-pirates-of- the Caribbean : 5) Henry Avery 

5)Famous Pirates of the Caribbean : 6) Sir Henry Morgan

6)Norse Goddess Freya - a Silver 2 Dollars High Relief antiquated Coin , the first in the Series titled "Norse Goddesses" (2017) 

Other interesting links to posts from Cook Islands minted by Coin Invest Trust:

1) Brexit : Britain's exit from the EEC : Coins issued by the Cook islands in the denomination of $1, $5 and $ 20 in 2016 

2) 150th Anniversary of "The Great Tea Race - 1866": Commemorative Coins in the denomination of 10 and 2 Dollars issued by Cook Islands in 2016

3) The Mystical Ancient Egyptian Labyrinth depicted on $10 Silver coins issued by Cook islands in 2016, under its "Milestones of Mankind Series".

4) King Arthur: The first coin in the six coins "Camelot Series".

5) Quilling Art: Silver 2 Dollars coins issued - Flowers (2016) & Bird (2017)

Links to posts on issues from the Republic of Palau:
5) Republic of Palau issues "Sand Dollars": Silver & Gold 1$ coins