Today’s featured coin is the 1oz Silver 2012 Australian Kookaburra coin struck by the Perth Mint. The coin was issued as legal tender under the authority of Australia with a denomination of one dollar.
Mintage
The maximum mintage of the bullion coin was 500,000 and the coin issue was sold out. There was no proof coin issued in 2012. The other bullion coin sizes issued in 2012 were the 10oz and the 1kg coins. The table below shows the maximum mintage and declared mintage totals.
| Year | Denomination | Description | Maximum Mintage | Declared Mintage |
| 2012 | $30 | 1kg Bullion Kookaburra Coin 2012 | unlimited | 51,596 |
| 2012 | $10 | 10oz Bullion Kookaburra Coin 2012 | unlimited | 25,608 |
| 2012 | $1 | 1oz Bullion Kookaburra Coin 2012 | 500,000 | SOLD OUT |
Coin Purity
From the year 1990 until the 2018 edition the coins were .999 fine silver, the recent editions of the coins have increased their purity to .9999 silver.
Coin Details
| Mint/Brand: | The Perth Mint |
| Silver Content: | 1 Troy Ounce |
| Purity: | .999 Fine Silver |
| Denomination: | $1 (Australian) |
| Year of Issue: | 2012 |
| Edge: | Milled |
| Weight: | 31.135g |
| Diameter: | 40.60mm |
| Thickness: | 2.98mm |
| Bullion Mintage: | 500,000 |
| Proof Mintage: | – |
Design
Reverse of Coin
The reverse of the coin depicts a kookaburra perched on a tree branch with eucalyptus leaves. The design includes an inscription ‘Australian Kookaburra’, and the year 2012.
Obverse of Coin
The obverse of the coin portrays the Ian Rank-Broadley effigy of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, the denomination of Australian 1 Dollar.
Privy Coin
The reverse of the coin for the privy design depicts the same 2012 kookaburra perched on a tree branch with eucalyptus leaves, with the addition of the Lunar Dragon privy mark to the bottom left of the coin. The design includes an inscription ‘Australian Kookaburra’, and the year 2012.
There are some strong views about the addition of the privy mark on existing coin designs. Some silver collectors believe that the privy mark is just another way for large mints to generate more revenue. I personally quite like the privy mark on a coin. The Lunar Dragon coin was released in 2012, so having that design represented as a privy mark on the 2012 Australian Kookaburra design creates that connection between the two coins, which I think is quite cool.
Post authored by @strenue
