During the Australian Gold Rush the Royal Mint allowed for the construction of a local mint in Sydney to process the raw gold into Sovereigns and Half Sovereigns.
In 1855 the Sydney Mint produced its first half sovereign. The Royal Australian Mint has commemorated 150 years since the
opening of the Sydney Mint with the release of this Ten Dollar piece. The reverse
features a gold plated impression of the Sydney Mint building with the
legend
"SYDNEY MINT TEN DOLLARS" and the dates "1855 - 2005." The obverse
contains the text "ON 14 MAY 1855 GOVERNOR SIR WILLIAM DENISON OFFICIALLY OPENED THE ROYAL MINT SYDNEY FAMOUS FOR PRODUCING AUSTRALIA'S FIRST GOLD SOVEREIGN."
In 1853 the British Secretary of State approved the establishment of a mint in Sydney. This mint was to be the first official
branch of the Royal Mint outside of England. The mint was created to process raw gold from the burgeoning gold fields into
coinage. The mint initially functioned well utilising the latest minting technologies. However by 1926 the technology and
profits at the Melbourne and Perth Mints far outstripped the Sydney Mint leading to the mint closing.
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