New Zealand two-dollar coin facts for kids
| New Zealand | |
| Value | 2.00 New Zealand dollars |
|---|---|
| Mass | 10.00 g |
| Diameter | 26.50 mm |
| Thickness | 2.70 mm |
| Edge | Security |
| Composition | Copper-aluminium-nickel (Cu 92%, Al 6%, Ni 2%) |
| Years of minting | 1990 – present |
| Catalog number | – |
| Obverse | |
| Design | Elizabeth II, Queen of New Zealand |
| Designer | Ian Rank-Broadley |
| Design date | 1999 |
| Reverse | |
| Design | An eastern great egret or kōtuku (Ardea alba modesta) |
| Design date | 1990 |
The New Zealand two-dollar coin is the biggest coin you can find in New Zealand. It's worth two New Zealand dollars. This coin was first made in 1990, at the same time as the one-dollar coin.
Both the $1 and $2 coins are gold-coloured. They are made from a mix of aluminium and brass. The two-dollar coin is the heaviest and largest coin used today. It weighs 10 grams and is 26.5 millimetres wide. It is also quite thick, at 2.7 mm. Sometimes, when people ask for a donation or entry fee, they might say gold coin please. This means they are looking for a $1 or $2 coin.
Contents
The Coin's Journey: A Brief History
Before the two-dollar coin, New Zealand used a two-dollar banknote. This paper money was used from 1967 until 1991. That's when the new coins became common.
Why New Coins Were Needed
The idea to make one-dollar and two-dollar coins came up in 1986. This was because of inflation. Inflation means that money buys less over time. This made the old one-cent and two-cent coins less valuable. So, those smaller coins were stopped in 1988.
Changes to the Queen's Portrait
From 1990 until 1998, the two-dollar coin showed a picture of Queen Elizabeth II. This portrait was created by an artist named Raphael Maklouf. On the coin, it said ELIZABETH II on the left and NEW ZEALAND on the right. The year the coin was made was at the bottom.
In 1999, the Queen's picture changed. A new portrait by Ian Rank-Broadley was used. This new picture had already appeared on British coins in 1998. On the new New Zealand coin, the Queen's name moved to the right. The country's name moved to the left.
The Special Bird on the Coin
The back of the two-dollar coin features a beautiful bird. It's an eastern great egret, also known as a kotuku in Māori. This bird is very special to New Zealand's Māori people. It is also very rare in New Zealand. You can only find it living in the Okarito Lagoon on the South Island.
This bird theme is also on the one-dollar coin. That coin has a kiwi bird on its back. The kiwi is a unique bird found only in New Zealand. The edge of the two-dollar coin has small ridges all around it. This is special because no other New Zealand coin currently in use has this feature.
The 1997 Coin Error
In 1997, some two-dollar coins were made with a small mistake. They had to be taken back and destroyed quickly. The problem was that these coins had a slightly different metal mix. This meant they didn't work well in vending machines or parking meters. Most coin machines check the metal to make sure a coin is real. Because of the difference, the 1997 coins were often rejected.
How Many Coins Are Made: Minting Figures
Here's a look at how many two-dollar coins have been made over the years:
| Year | Number of Coins Made |
|---|---|
| 1990 | 30,000,000 |
| 1991 | 10,000,000 |
| 1997 | 1,000,000 |
| 1998 | 6,000,000 |
| 1999 | 5,050,000 |
| 2001 | 3,000,000 |
| 2002 | 6,000,000 |
| 2003 | 6,000,000 |
| 2005 | 5,000,000 |
| 2008 | 8,000,000 |
| 2011 | 8,000,000 |
| 2014 | 7,000,000 |
| 2015 | 3,000,000 |
| 2016 | 3,000,000 |
| 2019 | 12,200,000 |
| Total | 113,250,000 |
The total value of all these coins is $226,500,000.
The Future of the Two-Dollar Coin
After Queen Elizabeth II passed away in September 2022, there will be changes to New Zealand coins. The Reserve Bank of New Zealand said they will use up all the current coins first. After that, new coins will be made featuring King Charles III. This change is expected to happen in a few years.
