Pobjoy Mint announced the release of a brand new £2 coin to commemorate the 60th Anniversary of the formation of the British Antarctic Territory in 1962.
The coin design shows an outline of Antarctica with the British Antarctic Territory highlighted within a marked sector alongside the Coat of Arms and the date of the anniversary.
Issued on behalf of the British Antarctic Territory the coin has been produced in Bi-metal and Proof Fine Silver with Goldclad®. The obverse of the coin features an effigy of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II produced exclusively by Pobjoy Mint.
The British Antarctic Territory
The British Antarctic Territory was officially established by a Statutory Instrument – the British Antarctic Territory Order in Council 1962/400. This came into effect on 3rd March 1962 and constituted the British Antarctic Territory as “…all islands and territories whatsoever between the 20th degree of west longitude and 80th degree of west longitude which are situated south of the 60th parallel of south latitude…”. The Territory includes the South Shetland Islands, South Orkney Islands and the Antarctic Peninsula, and extends to the South Pole.
The British Antarctic Territory forms the largest and most southerly of the UK’s 14 Overseas Territories, with over 99% of the Territory covered in a permanent ice sheet.
The UK’s claim to this part of Antarctica is the oldest of any made on the continent. The permanent UK presence in Antarctica began in 1944 with Operation Tabarin, which continued through the Falkland Islands Dependency Service (FIDS). For the past 60 years, the British Antarctic Survey (BAS) has provided a year-round presence in the British Antarctic Territory, leading the UK’s scientific research in Antarctica, and playing a crucial role in understanding the impacts of climate change on the continent.
For further information, visit the website of the British Pobjoy Mint.
Another Pobjoy issue was dedicated to the Antarctic Treaty and featured a Ross Seal.
The British Antarctic Territory issued some more coins that can be viewed in the database of Cosmos of Collectibles.
If you do not want to miss out on any new issues, subscribe to the Cosmos of Collectibles newsletter, which is published every two weeks.
In this National Geographic you can read more on how the climate change affects Antarctica.
Watch this film on Climate Change:
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And this is the official website of the British Antarctic Territory.
