Description

The Royal Australian Mint has issued 'Lest We Forget' circulating commemorative $2 coin in remembrance of Anzac Day 2017. Anzac Day is a national day of remembrance in Australia and New Zealand that broadly commemorates all Australians and New Zealanders "who served and died in all wars, conflicts, and peacekeeping operations" and "the contribution and suffering of all those who have served". Observed on 25 April each year, Anzac Day was originally to honour the members of the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps (ANZAC) who fought at Gallipoli against the Ottoman Empire during World War I.

In addition to the coin which will be entering circulation, there is also a special collector's version bearing the “C” mintmark to the left of the reverse design. This coin is minted to an uncirculated finish and sold on a printed folder. The coin, specifically produced at the Canberra Mint, has a total mintage of 40 000. An Australia Post PNC with a low mintage of 9000 has also been produced that contains the coin. A PNC or Postal Numismatic Cover is a joint release by the Mint and Australia Post. It is an envelope usually with a design and a stamp, postmark and a coin insert.

Obverse

Fourth crowned portrait of HM Queen Elizabeth II facing right, wearing the Girls of Great Britain and Ireland tiara.

The Girls of Great Britain and Ireland tiara was a wedding present in 1947 from her grandmother, Queen Mary, who received it as a gift from the Girls of Great Britain and Ireland in 1893 on the occasion of her marriage to the Duke of York, later George V. Made by E. Wolfe & Co., it was purchased from Garrard & Co. by a committee organised by Lady Eve Greville. In 1914, Mary adapted the tiara to take 13 diamonds in place of the large oriental pearls surmounting the tiara. At first, Elizabeth wore the tiara without its base and pearls but the base was reattached in 1969. The Girls of Great Britain and Ireland Tiara is one of Elizabeth's most recognisable pieces of jewellery due to its widespread use on British banknotes and coinage.

Engraver: Ian Rank-Broadley

ELIZABETH II AUSTRALIA 2017
IRB

Reverse

Depicts a partially colourized Napier Waller’s mosaic (the ceiling surrounded by yellow, green, blue and indigo coloured stripes followed by a circle of raised beads) from inside the dome of the Hall of Memory at the Australian War Memorial, in Canberra. The words “LEST WE FORGET” and “TWO DOLLARS” appear along the top and bottom rim, respectively.

The Australian War Memorial is Australia's national memorial to the members of its armed forces and supporting organisations who have died or participated in wars involving the Commonwealth of Australia. The Australian War Memorial was opened in 1941, located in Australia's capital, Canberra and consists of three parts: the Commemorative Area (shrine) including the Hall of Memory with the Tomb of the Unknown Australian Soldier, the Memorial's galleries (museum) and Research Centre (records).

The line 'Lest we forget', taken from Kipling's poem "Recessional" (which incidentally has nothing to do with remembering the fallen in war), is often added as if were part of the ode and repeated in response by those listening, especially in Australia. Several Boer War memorials are inscribed with the phrase showing its use pre WWI. In the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand and Singapore, the final line of the ode, "We will remember them", is repeated in response. In Canada, the second stanza of the above extract has become known as the Act of Remembrance, and the final line is also repeated.

Engraver: Tony Dean

LEST WE FORGET
TD
TWO DOLLARS

Edge
Characteristics
Type Commemorative Issue (Circulating)
Material Aluminium Bronze
Weight 6.6 g
Diameter 20.5 mm
Thickness 3 mm
Shape round
Alignment Medal
Mints
Canberra Mint (С)
Royal Australian Mint (RAM)

Related coins

6th Portrait, Indigenous Military Service

Lest We Forget

Aluminium Bronze, 6.6 g, ⌀ 20.5 mm