Search This Blog

Saturday 10 October 2020

1508) The ill-fated ship "Zuytdorp" (meaning "South Village"), Australia: The third Gold 100 Dollars and Silver 1 Dollar Triangular shaped Bullion Coins minted by the Royal Australian Mint (RAM): Coin issued in 08/2020:

1508) The ill-fated ship "Zuytdorp" (meaning "South Village"), Australia: The third Gold 100 Dollars and Silver 1 Dollar Triangular  shaped Bullion Coins minted by the Royal Australian Mint (RAM): Coin issued in 08/2020:

"Australian Shipwrecks" Coin Series:




In collaboration with LPM, the Royal  Australian Mint has brought out the third coin in its on-going Coin Series titled - "Australian Shipwrecks". This Coin Series focusses on some of Australia's most intriguing tales of mysterious and tragic ship-wrecks recorded.

For the first time in bullion this Coin series features coins that are triangular-shaped in design/size.

This banner/header shows an artist's version of the VOC vessel Zuytdorp capsizing in stormy seas. At left is seen images of the Commemorative Gold Bullion Coin - Obverse and Reverse - the Cliffs around which the wreck was located . At right is the image of a Dutch  Guilder     retrieved from the shipwreck by divers dated 1711 minted at Zeeland and bearing Dutch Arms

The third coin in the series features the ill-fated Zuytdorp", which is depicted on these magnificent gold and silver triangular bullion coins.

Four coins in all will be presented/issued in this Coin Series. These coins are both a stunning investment and a commemoration of Australia's maritime heritage.

About the Zuytdorp (the "South Village"):

The story and fate of the Zuytdorp (the South Village) began in 1711, when this Dutch East India Company (or "Verenidge Oost Indische Companie" - VOC) trading ship set out from the Netherlands for Batavia in the Dutch East Indies on what was to be its third and final voyage.

On board were more than 200 crewmen, as wellas, a very precious cargo of 250,000 newly minted silver guilder coins.

After nearly seven months at sea with scurvy claiming many men, the Zuytdorp continued on its journey from the Cape of Good Hope via the Indian Ocean.

Zuytdorp never arrived at Batavia and with no knowledge of where it may have sunk or whether it had been taken by pirates, no search was ever made, even though an approximate wreck location was known.

Discovery of the wreck of the Zuytdorp off the coast of Western Australia:

In 1964, a salvage mission was finally conducted to organise the first dive to locate the ship-wreck of the Zuytdorp on the ocean floor.

The wreck was found more than 200 years later off the coast of Western Australia along a stretch now known as the Zuytdorp Cliffs.

Divers of the wreck reported a "Carpet of Silver" - the result of thousands of silver coins strewn along the ocean floor. These coins inscribed with "Zeeland" and "1711" helped identify the wreck as the ill-fated Zuytdorp.

Despite the many organised dives and research into the conditions which might have been prevalent at the time, why and how the Zuytdorp was wrecked is still shrouded in mystery today and no one knows as to what caused the fine ship to wreck. Nevertheless, it is firmly believed that there were indeed survivors from the Zuytdorp.

The Commemorative Gold Bullion Coin:

The coin design depicts the story of the Zuytdorp wreck and the events that probably followed:

The Reverse of the Gold Bullion 100 Dollars Triangular shaped Coin.

The exquisite design on the Reverse conveys two scenes to communicate the journey of the "Zuytdorp". With the image of the ship viewed upright, the "Zuytdorp" is shown setting sail at full-mast.

On flipping the coin from top to bottom one can view the text - "1712" and "Zuytdorp" , which also depicts the ship in its final state, capsized shortly after wrecking in 1712. The inscription reads - "1 Oz .9999 Au".

The border encompassing the main design also incorporates unique design elements from the Zuytdorp.

On the Obverse of the 100 Dollars Triangular shaped Gold Bullion Coin are depicted scenes from the dramatic story of the vessel before its ultimate fate.

On the upper part is seen an effigy of Queen Elizabeth II facing right. The peripheral inscriptions are - "ELIZABETH II. AUSTRALIA. 2020".

The specifications of this Gold Bullion Coin are:

Coin Series Theme: "Australian Shipwrecks"; Denomination: 100 Dollars; Metal Composition: 9999 Fineness Gold (Au); Diameter/Size: 33.9 mm; Weight: 31.107 grams or 1.0 Oz; Coin Quality: Brilliant Uncirculated (BU); Country of issue: Australia; Minted by: Royal Australian Mint (RAM); Mintage: 250 pieces; Presentation Box: Yes, presented in a protective triangular capsule; Certificate of Authenticity (COA): Yes. Coin comes with a numbered COA; Third Release in the four Coin Series:"Zuytdorp"; Year of issue: 2020.

The Commemorative Silver Bullion Coin:

The Obverse and Reverse of the 1 Dollar Silver Bullion Coin are identical in design and shape to the Gold Bullion Coin issues.



The Reverse of the 1 Dollar Silver Bullion Triangular shaped Coin

The Obverse of the 1 Dollar Silver Bullion Triangular shaped Coin.

The specifications of the Silver issues are:

Coin Series Theme: "Australian Shipwrecks"; Denomination: 1 Dollar; Metal Composition: 999 Fineness Silver (Ag); Diameter/Size: 33.9 mm; Weight: 31.1 grams or 1.0 Oz; Coin Quality: Brilliant Uncirculated (BU); Country of issue: Australia; Minted by: Royal Australian Mint (RAM); Mintage: 20,000 pieces; Presentation Box and Certificate of Authenticity (COA): No; Year of issue: 2020.





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



 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












Links to interesting Posts on coins from Tuvalu Islands:



Link to Posts from Tokelau:
Links to posts on issues from the Republic of Palau:

Links to Posts on coin issues from Niue Islands:



Links to posts on Coin issues from Solomon Islands:


Other links to interesting posts on Coins brought out by Coin Invest Trust on behalf of other countries:










The 7-Summits Silver Coin Series:


Links on Batman and Superman Posts on this Blog:

6 comments:

  1. Rajan Trikha has commented:
    "Hidden treasure for 200 years 🤔"

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yes, indeed, Trikha sahab.. It was meant for the Dutch colony in Batavia/Indonesia . Each coin represents a piece of history in the early days of Dutch colonisation.

      Delete
    2. Rajan Trikha has further commented:
      "Very precious information through coins by putting so much efforts aft two decades Always love to go through your fascinating posts 👍👍

      Delete
  2. Santosh Khanna has commented:
    "Good information."

    ReplyDelete