1927 Australian Florin coin made into pendant

« Prev Item Next Item »

c. 1927

Overview

Pendant made from a modified 1927 commemorative Australian Florin coin issued to recognise the opening of Parliament House in Canberra on May 9 1927.
The front of the coin features an image of the original Parliament House in Canberra, below which are a pair of crossed maces above an oval frame containing the date '1927'.
The inscription 'PARLIAMENT . HOUSE . AUSTRALIA' appears above the image and '. ONE FLORIN .' below it.
The reverse of the coin features a crowned and robed bust of King George V. The script 'GEORGIVS V D. G. BRITT: OMN: REX F. D. IND: IMP:' appears around the edge.
The centre of the coin, featuring Parliament House, has been cut out to produce an open voided-centre pendant with the outer ring retained as a bezel. The central piece is able to rotate on a hidden vertical spindle.
A ring is attached to the top of the coin through which another metal ring is threaded at right angles to hold a chain.
While the original coin was made from silver, the pendant appears gold in colour.

Historical information

The original coin modified to make this pendant was struck to celebrate the official opening of the first Parliament House in Canberra on May 9, 1927.
The person who made the pendant was highly skilled, managing to accurately remove parts of the coin and then add a pin allowing the centre to rotate.

There are several other examples of modified coins made as trench art by soldiers to send home to their family members. These include, pendants, brooches and bracelets.

Details

Registration number

cwa-org-119-RoW00800

Item type

Themes