The federal government had been printing notes since but to produce enough coins for decimalisation it was necessary to build an entirely new mint. It opened a year ahead of C-Day and, with help from the Royal Mint in London and its branches in Australia, was able to produce and stockpile about one billion coins in good time.
When it came to the new currency's designs, it was decided that the coins should depict Australian wildlife while the notes should reflect our history and contribution to the wider world. However, the overall look and feel of the notes was radically different to anything Australians had seen before.
It was a signal achievement that C-Day came and went with the minimum of inconvenience. Banks had closed four days earlier so they could convert their machinery and processes. In the preceding three months, hand-picked, well-armed police had escorted dozens of semi-trailers across the country, stocking the nation's banks with the new currency. When banks opened on Monday 14 February, they were able to immediately begin issuing the new currency to long queues of enthusiastic or simply curious Australians.
Newspapers reported that even the Decimal Currency Board was surprised by how smoothly things went. The success of the conversion paved the way for metrification in the early s, which simplified and modernised our weights and measures. Australia's decimalisation process was monitored by other countries such as New Zealand and Britain, which switched to decimal currency in and respectively.
Reserve Bank of Australia Museum. The National Museum of Australia acknowledges First Australians and recognises their continuous connection to country, community and culture.
Defining Moments Decimal currency. On Valentine's Day Australians woke to a brand-new currency. The conversion was also a major logistical and public relations triumph. Holey dollars Foreign coins were common in the early years of the New South Wales colony. Five years later, he even wrote to London suggesting that he be allowed to mint a decimal currency in Sydney: As the issue of a circulating medium will in this case be made for the first time, it will be easy to arrange it on a decimal scale in order to induce the people in due time to keep their accounts in decimal numbers instead of pounds, shillings and pence.
But King's colonial masters rejected the proposal. Need for change It is interesting that it took Australia so long to make the switch to decimal currency. Naming the currency Decimalisation gave Australia the opportunity to create an entirely new currency that, through its name and the design of its notes and coins, would reflect how the nation saw itself.
The example at left shows explorer Matthew Flinders and is similar in design to pre-decimal notes. Preparing the nation Decimalisation presented major logistical challenges. The Royal Australian Mint soon after completion in C-Day and beyond It was a signal achievement that C-Day came and went with the minimum of inconvenience.
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Search for:. Search Articles. Search Store. Post Tags Australian currency decimal currency imperial system money. A giant display of the new coins featuring Australian wildlife. Image credit: National Archives of Australia. Related Video. Read Next. On this day: Pemulwuy is killed Remembering the Indigenous resistance fighter determined to maintain Aboriginal traditions by resisting British rule.
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