Coin of the Month: Honouring a Little-Known Holey History

The Royal Australian Mint (RAM) has released a $1 'Holey Dollar' coin, commemorating both the origins of Australia's first official currency and the 60th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Australia and Mexico.

The issue highlights a little-known historical connection between the two nations that dates back more than two centuries. In the early 1800s, New South Wales faced a severe shortage of coinage. To address the problem, Governor Lachlan Macquarie imported 40,000 Spanish eight-reales silver coins, many of which had been struck at colonial Mexican mints. Metalworker and convicted forger William Henshall subsequently transformed the coins into Australia's first distinct currency.

According to the National Museum of Australia, Macquarie likely learnt about Henshall's metal-working skills by reputation, and employed him to create the new coinage. This was carried out by punching out the centre of the original coins, creating a five shilling 'holey dollar' from the outer metal and a fifteen pence 'dump' from the centres.