29 Jun

1940 New Zealand Proof Centennial Halfcrown - Valued at $15,000 NZD

Struck in 1940 to commemorate the 100th Anniversary of the Treaty of Waitangi. In proof, it is among the great rarities of the New Zealand series — perhaps only four or five exist in private ownership.

A Coin for a Centenary

The New Zealand Centenary marked the 100th anniversary of the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi. To commemorate the occasion, the halfcrown—the largest denomination in circulation—was selected to have a unique design as a lasting souvenir of the historic year.

The Design

A Māori woman stands with her arms outstretched before a radiant, rising sun — a gesture of welcome, and of the dawn of a new century. To her left rise a whare and a pūhara, to her right stands a modern commercial building, emblem of a developing nation. The legend reads NEW ZEALAND CENTENNIAL HALF CROWN · 1840 · 1940.

The obverse carries the bare head of King George VI, facing left, from the hand of Thomas Humphrey Paget, with the legend GEORGE VI KING EMPEROR.

Proof, Provenance, and Why It Matters

The Centennial 1940 half-crowns were ordinary circulation coins intended for everyday use with a mintage of 10,800. A very small number, cited as low as only 4-5 examples in private hands, were produced as proofs — struck from specially prepared dies on polished blanks to give a sharp, mirror-like finish intended for presentation use.

This example, just consigned to us by a New Zealand collector, has a traceable provenance originating from Nobles 53 in 1997, and subsequently from Noble 54, 57, and HA 2005, from the Professor Wayne Newman Palmer Collection and later the Peh Family Collection.