2808) A Quarter Crown (¼) Coin, Turks and Caicos Islands (TCI), A British Overseas Territory (BOT): The Coin was only issued in 1981 and was since demonetised in 1986:
The Turks and Caicos Islands (abbreviated TCI) are a British Overseas Territory consisting of the larger Caicos Islands and smaller Turks Islands, two groups of tropical islands in the Lucayan Archipelago of the Atlantic Ocean and Northern West Indies.
They are known primarily for tourism and as an offshore financial centre. The resident population in April 2023 was about 60,000, making it the third largest of the British Overseas Territories (BOTs) by population.
The islands are southeast of Mayaguana in the Bahamas island chain and north of the island of Hispaniola (Haiti and the Dominican Republic).
Grand Turk (Cockburn Town), the capital since 1766, is situated on Grand Turk Island about 1,042 kilometres (647 mi) east-southeast of Miami. They have a total land area of about 430 square kilometres (170 sq mi).
The islands were inhabited for centuries by indigenous peoples.
The first recorded European sighting of them was in 1512.
In subsequent centuries, they were claimed by several European powers, with the British Empire eventually gaining control.
For many years they were governed indirectly through Bermuda, the Bahamas, and Jamaica.
When the Bahamas gained independence in 1973, the islands received their own governor, and have remained an autonomous territory since.
Turks and Caicos Quarter Crown (¼) Coin:
The Quarter (¼) Crown Coin is a former circulation piece of the Turks and Caicos Islands. It was issued in a single type along with a Half (½) Crown piece in 1981.
Both of these coins were distributed by the Government of the Turks and Caicos Islands and struck under commission at the Royal Mint, United Kingdom (UK).
The coin was initially legal tender on the Turks and Caicos Islands, circulating for a nominal value of ¼ crown, or 0.25 United States Dollars (USD), before its demonetisation in 1986.
Printed clockwise along the rim above is the English name of the issuing territory, "TURKS AND CAICOS ISLANDS".
Inscribed in the opposite direction along the periphery below is the face value "QUARTER CROWN", which is separated from the aforementioned legend by two small circular points.
The Obverse of the Quarter Crown Coin was designed by Arnold Machin (1911–1999), a British sculptor and coin designer.
Displayed in the center is an illustration of a young Queen Elizabeth II, the reigning British monarch at the time the coin was minted.
In this depiction, the queen is portrayed in her late thirties, facing right and wearing the George IV State Diadem on her head.
Accompanying the image is the caption "ELIZABETH II. D.G.REGINA", an abbreviation for the Latin - "Elizabeth II, Dei Gratia Regina", which translates to English as "Elizabeth II, By the Grace of God, Queen".
On the coin, this inscription is engraved clockwise from the lower left to lower right peripheries and is separated between the numeral and abbreviation "D.G." by Elizabeth's head.
Printed in the opposite direction along the rim below the queen's likeness is the Gregorian date of minting, "1981".
The total mintage of the coin is currently unknown. Only business strikes of this particular type are reported to exist.
The specifications of this Coin are:
Country: Turks and Caicos Islands (a British Overseas Territory - BOT); Year of Coin issue: 1981; Denomination: Turks and Caicos Islands ¼ crown Coin (Quarter Crown); Coin Theme: Caribbean spiny lobster ("Panuliras argus"), a species of marine crustacean native to the North Atlantic; Metal Composition: Cupronickel (CuNi); Weight: 5.67 grams; Diameter/Size: 24.26 mm; Shape: Round; Alignment: Medallic; Edge: reeded; Mint: Royal Mint, UK; Mintage: Unlimited.
(The above Quarter Crown Coin has been gifted for my collection by Jayant Biswas. Coin scanned and Post researched and written by Rajeev Prasad)
Links to Posts on Turks and Caicos Islands:
Posts on Aruba on this blog:
Links to Posts on Curacao on this Blog:
18) Sea Motifs, Bahamas: Gold Bullion Coins in the denominations of 100 Dollars (depicting a Blue Marlin) and 250 Dollars (depicting a Conch Shell): Coins issue date: 03.12.2019
19) A new Generation $100 Polymer Banknote, Trinidad and Tobago with enhanced security features to "raise the bar" for counterfeiters & unscrupulous elements: Banknote circulation date: 09.12.2019:
20) Festival di Tumba (Carnival of Curacao), Curacao: "50th Edition of the Curacao Carnival/Festival" held from 27-31.01.2020: A set of six Commemorative Postage Stamps brought out by Cpost (Curacao Post) on 20.02.2020
21) New Polymer Banknotes, Trinidad and Tobago: The entire series will consist of $100, $50, $20, $10, $5 and $1 denominations: $100 has already been issued on 09.12.2019
23) "Caribbean Sea-Horse", Barbados: $10 (Ten Dollars) 1.0 Oz. Gold Bullion Coins & $1 (One Dollar) 1.0 Oz. Silver Bullion Coins minted by the Scottsdale Mint; Year of issue: 2020
24) Cayman Islands, A British Overseas Territory (BOT): A set of identically numbered Banknotes of the presently circulating Banknotes from the "D" Series of Banknotes
Links to some other interesting posts from South American countries & Mexico:
26) A new 100 Boliviano Banknote from Bolivia: issued by the "Banco Centrale de Bolivia" (Central Bank of Bolivia) on 15.01.2019 under its new 2018 Banknote Series
27) Central Bank of Uruguay ("Banco Centrale del Uruguay"): 50th Anniversary (Golden Jubilee) - 1967-2017 - celebrated with the issue of a 50 Peso Commemorative Banknote on 14.09.2018
Links to Posts on Curacao on this Blog:
Rajan Trikha has commented:
ReplyDelete"Very historical and interesting post 👍👍"
Thank you, Trikha sahab. These was the only two coins minted for the Turks and Caicos Islands. My friend who is a numismatist, gifted these to me.
DeleteRajan Trikha has further commented:
Delete"Prize Possession👍👍"
Santosh Khanna has commented:
ReplyDelete"Very interesting and informative post Thanks for sharing. "
Thank you so much Khanna sahab.
DeleteRaj Kumar Srivastava has commented:
ReplyDelete"Great 👍🏻"
Thanks, Raj.
Delete