Papua New Guinea Elizabeth II 1 Kina

History

1 Kina 2002-2004, KM# 6a, Papua New Guinea, Elizabeth II

Obverse. Photo © NumisCorner.com

Description

Papua New Guinea is an Oceanian country that occupies the eastern half of the island of New Guinea and its offshore islands in Melanesia, a region of the southwestern Pacific Ocean north of Australia. Its capital, located along its southeastern coast, is Port Moresby. The western half of New Guinea forms the Indonesian provinces of Papua and West Papua.

At the national level, after being ruled by three external powers since 1884, Papua New Guinea established its sovereignty in 1975. This followed nearly 60 years of Australian administration, which started during World War I. It became an independent Commonwealth realm in 1975 with Queen Elizabeth II as its head of state and became a member of the Commonwealth of Nations in its own right.

The kina is the currency of Papua New Guinea. It is divided into 100 toea. The name kina is derived from Kuanua language of the Tolai region, referring to a callable pearl shell used widely for trading in both the Coastal and Highlands areas of the country.

Obverse	Depicts the Bank of Papua New Guinea's logo in centre, a name of the country and date below. The Bank of Papua New Guinea is the central bank of Papua New Guinea. Its main function is to issue currency and to act as the banker and financial agent to the Government. It is also in charge of regulating banking and other financial services and manages the gold, foreign exchange and any other international reserves of Papua New Guinea. Engraver: Richard Renninger PAPUA NEW GUINEA 2004
Reverse	Animal (fish, bird, mammal etc.) Crocodile Depicts saltwater and freshwater crocodiles around the hole. Denomination below. The saltwater crocodile (Crocodylus porosus), also known as the estuarine crocodile, Indo-Pacific crocodile, marine crocodile, sea crocodile or informally as saltie, is the largest of all living reptiles, as well as the largest riparian predator in the world. The freshwater crocodile (Crocodylus johnstoni), also known as the Australian freshwater crocodile, Johnstone's crocodile or colloquially as freshie, is a species of crocodile endemic to the northern regions of Australia. Unlike their much larger relative, the saltwater crocodile, freshwater crocodiles are not known as man-eaters and rarely cause fatalities, although they will bite in self-defence if cornered. Engraver: William Shoyer K1
Edge	Reeded (milled)