This one hundred fifty Dollar gold
proof
coin issued in 2003 was the ninth and final to be released from a series entitled Floral Emblems of Australia. The set
was released between the years of 1995 and 2003 with a coin featuring the floral emblem of each state as well as the Commonwealth,
the Australian Capital Territory and the Northern Territory. This particular coin features the Royal Blue Bell, which is
the floral emblem of the Australian Capital Territory. Each emblem of the entire series is represented on three different
coins. The first is a $150 half Troy ounce
proof
coin and the remaining two are both $100 one-third Troy ounce proof coins, one of which is an
uncirculated version.
(Royal Australian Mint, 2002)
With regards to the $150 coins there was a limited
mintage
of 1500. Credit for the design of the reverse of this coin goes to
Horst Hahne. The design is very simple and features the Royal Blue Bell, which takes up the majority of the space. The
legend
150 DOLLARS is curved beneath the flower following the shape of the coin. The
obverse features the Ian Rank-Broadley portrait of her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II and is surrounded by the
legend
that reads ELIZABETH II AUSTRALIA 2003. The $150 coins were issued in a Tasmanian Blackwood presentation case and accompanying
it was a Certificate of Authenticity and booklet of information pertaining to the different floral emblems. The outer box
was a burgundy colour and features the text FLORAL EMBLEMS OF AUSTRALIA written above a picture of the flower represented
within. Below was written 2003 $150 GOLD PROOF. Additionally a larger presentation case was made available, in which the
entire series can be housed.
The Royal Bluebell or the Wahlenbergia gloriosa as it is known by its botanical name is a wild flower found across Australia.
Its typical favoured environment includes places of high rainfall and is found in particularly plentiful quantities in the
Australian Alps. It can be seen in both shady areas and regions of direct and bright sunlight. As a wild flower they do not
reach great heights and the deep blue and purple colours will be spotted on the ground.
(Wikipedia, 2013)
Flowering generally occurs between October and March when they will be seen dotted around providing colour to the dark
green leaves. The botanical name of the flower was given in honour of the Swedish Professor of Botony, Georg Goran Wahlenberg.
The Royal Bluebell was made the official floral emblem for the Australian Capital Territory in 1981.
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