Australian 2016 Uncirculated Mint Set
The Set
The 2016 mint set, themed "The Changeover", marked the 50th anniversary of the introduction of decimal currency on 14 February 1966. Its distinction sits on the front of the coins: for the first time in the series, every coin in the set carries a commemorative obverse - a special anniversary portrait of Queen Elizabeth II by Ian Rank-Broadley, issued for that year only. The reverses remain the standard designs. The mintage was 62,718 and the issue price $25.00.
The Anniversary Obverse
Ian Rank-Broadley's standard portrait had appeared on Australian coins since 1999, and for the anniversary year he prepared a modified version marking the 50th year of decimal currency, which appears on all six denominations in the set. Collectors of the individual denominations will know the portrait from the 2016 rows of the design tables on this wiki, where it is coded IBR50. The same portrait appeared in the corresponding 2016 proof year set, making 2016 a complete one-year portrait type across the Mint's collector products.
Fiftieth Anniversary Year
The Changeover set was the centrepiece of a wide anniversary program that recalled the events of 1966, and it pairs naturally with the 2024 Change of Monarch set, the other great obverse-themed issue of the modern series: where the 2016 set repeats a single commemorative portrait across all six denominations, the 2024 set gives every denomination a different one. Together the two sets bracket the portrait story of the modern era, from a single reign celebrated to a succession marked.
| Set details | |
|---|---|
| Packaging | Presentation folder |
| Coins | 6 (5 cent to 2 dollars) |
| Special feature | Anniversary obverse on every coin |
| Mintage | 62,718 |
| Issue price | $25.00 |
| File:Australian UNC Set 2016 packaging.jpg | File:Australian UNC Set 2016 coins.jpg | The 2016 "Changeover" set, with the anniversary obverse on every coin. |
| File:Australian UNC Set 2016 obverse.jpg | The 50th anniversary obverse by Ian Rank-Broadley (IBR50). |
