New Guinean pound

New Guinean pound
User(s)	Territory of New Guinea
Pegged with	Australian pound, which was in turn pegged with the British pound at par.
Subunit
1/20	shilling
1/240	penny
Symbol	£
shilling	s
penny	d
Plural
penny	pence
Coins	1/2d, 1d, 3d, 6d, 1/-
This infobox shows the latest status before this currency was rendered obsolete.

The pound was the currency of the Australia territory of New Guinea between 1915 and 1966. It replaced the mark when Australia occupied the former German colony at the end of World War I. It was equal to the Australian pound and Australian currency circulated, alongside coins issued specifically for New Guinea between 1929 and 1945. The pound was subdivided into 20 shillings, each of 12 pence.

Between 1942 and 1945, the Oceania pound circulated, issued by the Japanese occupiers. Australian coins and banknotes resumed circulation after the war and continued until 1975, when the kina replaced the Australian dollar at par.

Coins

In 1929, nickel halfpennies and pennies, as well as cupro-nickel pennies were introduced. These (as well as all subsequent New Guinean coins) were holed. The inscription on the reverse read Georgius V. D G Rex et Ind. Imp., which translates from Latin as, "George the Fifth, by the Grace of God King and Emperor of India". The inscription on the obverse reads Territory of New Guinea. These coins were followed in 1935 by threepence, sixpence and shillings. The following year, pennies were minted under King Edward VIII, a relatively rare feature as Edward abdicated less than eleven months after succeeding to the throne. Most other dominions and colonies featuring the British monarch on their currency did not have enough time to redesign their coins before the king abdicated. Coins of varying denominations were minted under the reign of George VI, beginning in 1938. In 1945, production of coins ceased until Papua New Guinea started minting their own currency in the 1970s.

Gallery

• 

  1936 penny, obverse

• 

  1936 penny, reverse

• 

  1936 shilling

References

Preceded by: German gold mark Ratio: at par

Currency of New Guinea 1915 – 1942 Concurrent with: Australian pound

Succeeded by: Oceania pound Reason: Japanese occupation Ratio: par

Preceded by: Oceania pound Reason: Liberation from Japanese occupation

Currency of New Guinea 1945 – 1966 Concurrent with: Australian pound

Succeeded by: Australian dollar Reason: decimalisation Ratio: 2 dollars = 1 pound