Commemorative coins of Australia


The Royal Australian Mint has issued Australian commemorative coins since 1927 with a range of designs, often depicting various anniversaries, organisations, and significant events in Australian history. Commemorative coins have been issued for various denominations from both the Australian pound and decimal currencies.

2 dollar coin

Australia's first commemorative $2 coin was released in 2012 to commemorate Remembrance Day. It features a poppy in the centre on a background of microtext, reading: "REMEMBRANCE DAY" and "LEST WE FORGET". Australia is the second country to circulate coloured commemorative coins, after Canada.
Year IssuedCommemorative SubjectTotal in setReverse DesignerReverse DesignMintage Figures
2012Remembrance Day – Red Poppy1Aaron BaggioColoured red poppy centre on microtext background.503,000
2012Remembrance Day – Gold Poppy1Aaron BaggioNon-coloured poppy centre on microtext background.5,799,000
201360th Anniversary of the Coronation of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, Queen of Australia1Aleksandra StokicConcentric purple stripes and a central design feature of St Edward's Crown.995,000
2014Remembrance Day – Dove1Royal Australian MintDesigned to commemorate Remembrance Day with a dove and olive branch surrounded by concentric green circles and rays of sunlight. It was inspired by the Rising Sun badge.1,856,000
2015ANZAC CoveLest We Forget1Aleksandra StokicDesigned to commemorate 100 years since the ANZAC Cove landing. Poppies and graves surround a red concentric circle encapsulating the words "Lest We Forget".1,466,000
2015Flanders Field1Aleksandra StokicDesigned to commemorate the poem In Flanders Fields. Sculpted larks surrounding the orange coloured rings representing the sunset glow.2,151,000
201650th anniversary of decimal currency1G. K. Gray2016 obverse design to celebrate the 50th anniversary of decimal currency.2,885,000
2016Australian Olympic Team6Bronwyn KingReleased in partnership with Woolworths. Six versions were released, featuring the emblem of the Australian Olympic team with the various coin colours; blue, black, red, yellow, green, as well as a Paralympics coin.12,000,000
2017War Memorial Dome – Lest We Forget1Tony DeanDepiction of Napier Waller's mosaic from the Australian War Memorial's Hall of Memory.3,975,000
2017Remembrance Day – Rosemary Sprig1Aleksandra StokicDesigned to commemorate Remembrance Day. Inner circle containing rosemary, surrounded by circle of pad printed rosemary leaves and flowers in green and purple. The word "Remembrance" is intertwined through the rosemary leaves.2,122,000
2017Possum Magic3Three Possum Magic coins minted; 'Sad, invisible Hush', 'Hush sees her tail' and 'Hush visible again'.2,000,000 of each
2018Eternal Flame – Lest We Forget1Bronwyn KingDepiction of the eternal flame from the Australian War Memorial.5,400,000
2018Invictus Games1Aleksandra Stokic Commemorating the 2018 Invictus Games, hosted in Sydney, Australia. Depicts the side view of an athlete in a wheelchair.2,100,000
2018Armistice1Tony Dean Designed to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the Armistice of 11 November 1918. Depicts the number 100 with a poppy in the middle zero.1,658,000
2018Australian Commonwealth Games Team3Emblem of the Australian Commonwealth Games team and their blue, green and gold colours.2,000,000
2019Centenary of Repatriation1Adam William Ball Old style Australian Defence Force badge surrounded by poppy pettles. The words "ONE HUNDRED YEARS OF REPATRIATION" surround the design.2,127,000
2019Police Remembrance1Adam William Ball Standardised seven-pointed star police badge with inner circle depicting a crown surrounded by ring of blue and white checkered tape.2,000,000
2019Rugby Union1Colourised green and gold ring surrounding a wallaby holding a ball with "Wallabies Australia" on the outside.2,170,000
2019Mr Squiggle4Four coins minted featuring 'Mr Squiggle', 'Bill the Steam Shovel', 'Gus the Snail' and 'Blackboard'.2,000,000 of each
2020Australian Olympic Team6Emblem of the Australian Olympic team and their blue, green, gold, red and black colours and an additional coin for the Paralympics.2,450,000 of each
2020ICC Women's T20 World Cup1Royal Australian MintReleased in partnership with Woolworths. Designed to commemorate the hosting of 2020 ICC Women's T20 World Cup in Australia. Depicts a female cricketer in front of stumps, surrounded by a coloured circle.2,182,000
2020Anniversary of the End of World War II1Tony Dean Designed to commemorate the 75th anniversary of the End of World War II. A tri-coloured circle of green, blue and white representing the three armed forces involved in WWII is superimposed over a peace dove flying over a part of the globe with Australia visible on the bottom.600,000
2020Firefighters1Aleksandra Stokic Depicts a male and female firefighter standing back to back fighting a fire. An orange coloured ball of flame is superimposed in the centre. The word "FIREFIGHTERS" is placed at the bottom.1,600,000
2021Indigenous Military Service1Chern’ee SuttonThe inner circle features a black handprint and is surrounded by three rows of dots in the colours of the Defense Forces Tri-Service Flag. The outer circle contains various Aboriginal objects such as spears.1,000,000
2021The Wiggles430th anniversary of the Wiggles. Four coins; 'Captain Feathersword', 'Wags the Dog', 'Henry the Octopus' and 'Dorothy the Dinosaur'.2,300,000 of each
2021Ambulance Services1Aaron BaggioThe coin honours the 33,000 paramedics who worked in the various ambulance services during the COVID-19 pandemic in Australia. Depicts a male and female paramedic attending a patient on a stretcher. A green ring in the middle contains the Maltese cross.2,000,000
2021Aboriginal flag1Harold ThomasDesigned to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Australian Aboriginal flag.2,000,000
2022Australian Frontline Workers1Adam William BallDesigned to honour frontline workers who worked during the COVID-19 pandemic in Australia. A ring of 12 pictograms of frontline workers are depicted on the coin.2,000,000
2022Honey Bee1Aleksandra StokicTwo honey bees sit on a sphere with honeycomb shapes on the surface, surrounded by flowers and branches from a wattle tree.2,000,000
202275th Anniversary of Peacekeeping1Aleksandra StokicTwo doves encircle a blue United Nations coloured centre whilst bearing olive branches in their mouths.2,000,000

1 dollar coin

Not all years have issues for circulation with 1987, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1992 and 2012 only in mint packs. Issue 1984, 1985, 1994, 1995, 1998, 2000, 2004, 2005, 2006 and 2008 are the only issue with the Kangaroo portrait, however, the 2007 $1 with the kangaroo was also minted, but only for mint sets.
Year IssuedCommemorative subjectReverse designerReverse designMintage Figures
1986International Year of PeaceHorst HahneHands holding a dove25,100,000
1988First Fleet Bicentenary Stuart DevlinAboriginal design of a Koori Kangaroo20,400,000
1993Landcare AustraliaVladimir GottwaldWavy lines and hands shaping Australia15,000,000
1996Sir Henry Parkes CentenaryWojciech PietranikPortrait of Sir Henry Parkes, "Father of Federation"26,200,000
1997Sir Charles Kingsford Smith Birth Centenary Wojciech PietranikPortrait of Sir Charles Kingsford Smith and plane24,381,000
1999International Year of Older PersonsWojciech PietranikInternational Year of Older Persons logo "towards a society for all ages"29,218,000
2001Centenary of FederationWojciech PietranikCentenary of Federation logo27,905,390
2001International Year of the VolunteerWojciech PietranikInternational year of volunteers logo6,000,000
2002Year of the OutbackWojciech PietranikYear of Outback logo35,373,000
2003Australia's VolunteersWojciech PietranikStylised spiral roll symbolising the shape of the outline of Australia4,149,000
2003Centenary of Women's SuffrageVladimir GottwaldRepresentation of the female figures in the suffrage banner by Dora Meeson Coates10,007,000
200560th anniversary of the end of World War IIWojciech PietranikThe Dancing Man34,200,000
2007APEC Australia 2007Wojciech PietranikLogo/Symbol of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum made up of a 7 pointed star itself made from 21 boomerangs20,100,000
2008Centenary of Scouts AustraliaCaitlin GoodallDepiction of the Australian spirit flame, the Australian Scout symbol which resembles the international Scouting symbol, the fleur-de-lis, incorporating the southern cross17,200,000
2009Centenary of Commonwealth Age PensionWojciech PietranikSix adults and five children depicted representing pensioners or people dependent on age pensions10,158,000
2010Centenary of Girl Guides AustraliaWojciech PietranikDepiction of the Australian Girl Guides Symbol which is the Girl Guides Trefoil with a 7 pointed Star in the top leaf of the Trefoil12,585,000
2011Commonwealth Heads of Government MeetingTim LeaversuchCommonwealth Heads of Government Meeting 2011, Perth, Western Australia9,397,003
2012Australian 1 dollar coin only made for setsS.DevlinQueen Elizabeth the secondunknown
2014ANZAC CentenaryLogo of the ANZAC centenary. Australian soldier with head bowed and rifle reversed in solemn reflection23,000,000
2015ANZAC CentenaryLogo of the ANZAC centenary. Australian soldier with head bowed and rifle reversed in solemn reflection1,400,000
2016ANZAC CentenaryLogo of the ANZAC centenary. Australian soldier with head bowed and rifle reversed in solemn reflection2,190,000
201650th anniversary of Decimal CurrencyStuart Devlin2016 obverse design to celebrate the 50th anniversary of decimal currency560,000
2017ANZAC CentenaryLogo of the ANZAC centenary. Australian soldier with head bowed and rifle reversed in solemn reflection1,900,000
2018ANZAC CentenaryLogo of the ANZAC centenary. Australian soldier with head bowed and rifle reversed in solemn reflection2,000,000
2019Great Coin Hunt – oneA–Z coins issued featuring 'Iconic Australia'. A total of 26 coins issued.523,000
2019Great Coin Hunt – oneA letter 'A' coin of the great coin hunt was released with a privy mark 'envelope'.14,500
2020Centenary of QantasLogo of Centenary of Qantas2,000,000
2020Donation DollarA dollar designed to be donated12,500,000
2021Great Coin Hunt – twoA–Z coins issued featuring 'Iconic Australia'. A total of 26 coins issued.456,000
2021Great Coin Hunt – twoA letter 'G' coin of the great coin hunt was released with a coloured reverse.22,500
2021Donation DollarA dollar designed to be donated5,000,000
2023Great Coin Hunt – threeA–Z coins issued featuring 'Iconic Australia'. A total of 26 coins issued.
2023Great Coin Hunt – threeA letter 'X' coin of the great coin hunt was released with a coloured reverse.
2023Australian Football League premiership coin huntTwenty coins released featuring eighteen team badges and two featuring the AFL & AFLW winning cups
2023Australian Football League premiership coin huntTwo coins featuring the AFL & AFLW winning cups with coloured reverses.