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Saturday 16 November 2019

1140) Australian Redback Spider: The first coin in a new $1 (AUD) Silver Bullion Coin Series, brought out by The Royal Australian Mint (RAM) in a series titled "Australia's Most Dangerous": Coin issue year: 2020:

1140) Australian Redback Spider: The first coin in a new  $1 (AUD) Silver Bullion Coin Series, brought out by The Royal Australian Mint (RAM) in a series titled "Australia's Most Dangerous": Coin issue year: 2020:



The Royal Australian Mint has brought out a new bullion Coin which is the first one on a new Coin-series titled "Australia's Most Dangerous".

The first coin in the Series features the beautiful, but potentially deadly "Redback Spider" (Latrodectus hasseltii)  which is found throughout Australia. 


The Reverse of the $1 (AUD) Silver Bullion Coin placed against a photograph of a female Redback Spider's cobweb

About the Redback Spider ("Latrodectus hasseltii"):

The Redback Spider is also known as the "Australian Black Widow". The Redback Spider isalso known as the "Red-Striped Spider", "Red-Spot Spider, "Jockey Spider", "Murra-ngura Spider", "Kapara Spider" and "Kanna-jeri Spider".

It is a species of highly venomous spider, believed to have originated in the South Australian or adjacent Western Australian deserts, but now found throughout Australia, Southeast Asia and New Zealand, with colonies elsewhere outside Australia.

The adult female is easily recognised by her spherical black body with a prominent red stripe on the upper side of her abdomen and an hourglass-shaped red/orange streak on the lower side.


An hour-glass shaped orange/red streak seen on the lower side of the female Redback Spider

Females usually have a body length of about 10.0 mm (or 0.4 inches), while the male is much smaller, being only 3-4 mm (or 0.12 - 0.16 inches) long.


                          A Redback Spider - female
 Mainly nocturnal, the female Redback lives in an untidy web in a warm, sheltered location, commonly near or inside human residences. 

It preys on insects, spiders and small vertebrates that it ensnares into its web. It kills its prey by injecting a complex venom through its two fangs when it bites, before wrapping them in silk and sucking out the liquefied insides. 

Often, it first squirts its victims with what resembles a "superglue" from its spinnerets, immobilising the prey by sticking the victims limbs and appendages to its own body. The Redback spider then trusses the victim with silk. Once the prey is restrained, it is bitten repeatedly on the head, body and leg segments and is then hauled back to the Redback spider's retreat.

Sometimes, a potentially dangerous victim can be left to struggle for hours, until it is exhausted enough to be approached safely.

Male Redback Spiders and spiderlings often live on the periphery of the female spider's cobweb and steal left-overs.


                                A Redback Spider - male

The Redback is one of the few Arachnids, that displays "sexual cannibalism" while mating.

Many Arachnologists (persons who study the behaviour of spiders) attest that humans are never more than six feet away from most commonly found spiders, in Australia. Among these, the Redback spider is particularly common living among humans, where they build their cobwebs in dark places in homes and gardens.

Although the Redback spider feared for their venomous bite, Australia has an anti-venom treatment since 1956, after which date no human casualties/fatalities have been recorded. Nevertheless, Redback spiders play an important role in Australia's bio-diversity, both as insect predators and as prey to other spiders et al.

Redbacks are also not known for being aggressive and most human bites occur primarily by accident

The Silver Bullion $1 Coin:


The Reverse of the 1 Dollar (AUD) Silver Bullion Coin depicts an intricately detailed image of a female Redback Spider delicately suspended in her characteristic, though unusual cobweb pattern.

The peripheral inscription at upper right reads - "1 Oz .999 SILVER". The inscription in the lower centre of the coin reads - "REDBACK SPIDER".


The Obverse of the 1 Dollar (AUD) Silver Bullion Coin depicts an effigy of Queen Elizabeth II facing right, designed by Jody Clark, whose initials "JC" appear below the Queen's neck.

The peripheral inscriptions are - "ELIZABETH II. AUSTRALIA . 2020. 1 DOLLAR".

The specifications of this coin are:

Coin Series Theme: "Australia's Most Dangerous"; Denomination: 1 Dollar (AUD); Metal Composition: .999 Silver (Ag); Coin Quality: Brilliant Uncirculated;  Diameter/Size: 40.0 mm; Weight: 31.1 grams or 1 Oz; Edge: Reeded; Country of issue: Australia; Minted by: Royal Australian Mint; Mintage 25,000 pieces; Box and Certificate of Authenticity (COA): None.







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


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


 3) Currency & Coinage of the Solomon 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

17) Currency & coinage of the Kingdom of Tonga : Pa'anga & Seniti 

18) Postage Stamps & Coin: Commemorating the Centenary of the Trans-Australian Railway Line stamps issued by Australia Post & coins by Perth Mint on 04.07.2017



20) The Earth and Beyond Coin Series issued by the Royal Australian Mint (RAM): First coin in the series - The Earth - issued on 03.04.2018


21) Wedge Tailed Eagle Coin Series: 200 Dollars Gold, 100 Dollars Gold & 1 Dollar Silver coins brought out by the Perth Mint, Australia in its on-going series started in 2014 in collaboration with John Mercanti, Chief Engraver of the US Mint: Coins issued in 2018


22) Australian Kangaroo Coin Series: 25th Anniversary Commemoration: A $100 Gold Coin and a $10 Silver Coin with selective gold plating issued by the Royal Australian Mint (RAM) in 2018


23) "Kangaroo at Sunset": The Royal Australian Mint (RAM) is phasing out this iconic $25 Gold Coin from its repertoire of Commemorative Coins in 2018


24) "Discovery": An exclusive one piece - 2 Kilo Gold Coin studded with four Argyle Pink Diamonds/Gemstones minted by the Perth Mint, Australia in co-ordination with the Argyle Pink Diamonds Mine on 04.09.2018


25) "The Moon": The Earth and Beyond three Silver Coin Series: Royal Australian Mint issues the second coin in the series - a silver coloured Five (AUD) Dollars Concave-shaped (Domed) Coin on 03.09.2018


26) New $10 Australian Banknote issued on 18.09.2017 under the "Fourth Series of Banknotes": New generation of Australian Banknotes being introduced in a phased manner from 09/2016 onwards by the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA)

27) New Australian 50 Dollar Banknote (AUD $50) issued in 10/2018, under the "Fourth Series of Banknotes": New Generation of Australian Banknotes introduced in a phased manner from 09/2016 onwards by Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA)


28) "Lake Argyle" - "The Jewel of the Kimberley", Australia: Limited Edition Series of Rare diamond ingots in Pink Gold (10 Oz. & 1 Oz.) and Platinum (1 Oz.) studded with eight Argyle Pink Diamonds each issued by the Perth Mint, Australia in collaboration with the Argyle Pink Diamond Mine (2018)


29) "The Sun": The Earth and Beyond Coin Series": Royal australian Mint (RAM) issues the third and final coin in the three-coin Series, a Silver Coloured Five (AUD) Dollars Concave-shaped (Domed) Coin on 03.02.2019


30) Australia New Generation $20 Banknote is scheduled to be released in October 2019, joining the already released Banknotes in the denominations of $5, $10 and $50 in the new Series

31) The Afghan Express, Australia's iconic Train nicknamed "The Ghan": 90th Anniversary of the iconic Transcontinental Passenger Train: A 50 Cent Colour applied coin brought out by the Royal Australian Mint on 08.07.2019

32) "Kangaroos at Dawn", Australia, replaces the "Kangaroo at Sunset" Coin Series:25 Dollar Gold 1/5 Oz Coin and 1 Dollar Silver 1/2 Oz Coins brought out by the Royal Australian Mint

33) Australian Redback Spider: The first coin in a new $1 (AUD) Silver Bullion Coin Series, brought out by the Royal Australian Mint (RAM) in a series titled "Australia's Most Dangerous": Coin issue year: 2020

Links to interesting Posts on coins from Tuvalu Islands:
Links to posts on issues from the Republic of Palau:

2) Four Leaf Clover - Coin titled "Silver Fortune" - A 5 Dollars Silver coin issued by Coin Invest Trust in 2018


3) Totem Pole 2 Oz. or 10 Dollars Silver coin from the Republic of Palau being issued on 12.06.2018


4) The "Maneki Neko Cat" ot the "Fortune Cat" : A $1 Gold Coin issued by the Republic of Palau: Minted by B.H. Mayer's Kunstprageanstalt, Munich for Coin Invest Trust in 2018


Links to Posts on coin issues from Niue Islands:


1) Battle of Marathon: Battles that changed History Coin Series: A $2 Silver coin issued by the New Zealand Mint of behalf of Niue Islands in 2018


2) Sachin Tendulkar: "World's Greatest Batsman": Gold & Silver coins issued by the New Zealand Mint on behalf of Niue Islands in 2015


3) The Red Dragon, an issue from Niue Island: minted by the New Zealand Mint: "The Mythical Dragons of the World Coin Series": The first Silver 5 Dollars selectively coloured Coin in the Series features the "Red Dragon of Vortigern": Year of issue: 2019

4) "The Four Dragons", Niue Island: Minted by the New Zealand Mint: The "Mythical Dragons of the World Coin Series": The second Silver 5 Dollars Selectively Coloured Coin in the Series features the Four Dragons: the Long Dragon, the Yellow Dragon, the Black Dragon and the Pearl Dragon: Year of issue: 2019

5) The "1001 Arabian Nights Tales": First $2 Silver crown Coin coin in the Series depicts the "story of Ali Baba and the 40 thieves": Coin issue date: 29.03.2019

6) Niue Island: "The Seven Voyages of Sindbad the Sailor": The "1001 Arabian Nights Tales": The Second Coin in the Series features the story of Sindbad the Sailor, on a $2 Silver Crown Coin issued by the New Zealand Mint on behalf of Niue Island in the South Pacific: Issue date: 05/2019

7) Birds of Paradise, Niue Islands: A 1 Oz Silver $2 Coin minted by the New Zealand Mint on behalf of Niue Islands: Coin minting Year: 2020

Links to posts on Coin issues from Solomon Islands:



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