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  • 50 Dollars 1988, KM# 64, Cook Islands, Elizabeth II, Great Explorers, Ferdinand Magellan
  • 50 Dollars 1988, KM# 64, Cook Islands, Elizabeth II, Great Explorers, Ferdinand Magellan
Description

The Cook Islands is a self-governing island country in the South Pacific Ocean in free association with New Zealand. It comprises 15 islands whose total land area is 240 square kilometres (92.7 sq mi).

Obverse

Third crowned portrait of HM Queen Elizabeth II facing right, wearing the George IV State Diadem.

The George IV State Diadem, officially the Diamond Diadem, is a type of crown that was made in 1820 for King George IV. The diadem is worn by queens and queens consort in procession to coronations and State Openings of Parliament. The piece of jewellery has been featured in paintings and on stamps and currency. It can be seen in the Queen's Gallery at Buckingham Palace.

Engraver: Raphael David Maklouf

ELIZABETH II COOK ISLANDS
RDM
1988

Reverse

Depicts Ferdinand Magellan’s ships Trinidad (the flagship under Magellan's command) and Victoria (or Nao Victoria, as well as Vittoria, named after the church of Santa Maria de la Victoria de Triana, where Magellan took an oath of allegiance to Charles V; commanded by Luis Mendoza), all inside decorated ring interrupted by the legend.

Ferdinand Magellan (c. 1480–1521) was a Portuguese explorer who organised the Spanish expedition to the East Indies from 1519 to 1522, resulting in the first circumnavigation of the Earth, completed by Juan Sebastián Elcano.

Magellan became a skilled sailor and naval officer and was eventually selected by King Charles I of Spain to search for a westward route to the Maluku Islands (the "Spice Islands"). Commanding a fleet of five vessels, he headed south through the Atlantic Ocean to Patagonia, passing through the Strait of Magellan into a body of water he named the "peaceful sea" (the modern Pacific Ocean). Despite a series of storms and mutinies, the expedition reached the Spice Islands in 1521 and returned home via the Indian Ocean to complete the first circuit of the globe. Magellan did not complete the entire voyage, as he was killed during the Battle of Mactan in the Philippines in 1521.

FERDINAND MAGELLAN
$50
FM

Edge

50 Dollars

3rd portrait
KM# 64
Characteristics
Type Commemorative Issue (Non-circulating)
Material Silver
Fineness 0.925
Weight 20.94 g
Diameter 38 mm
Thickness -
Shape round
Alignment Medal
Mint
Franklin Mint (FM)

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