In collaboration with The Royal Australian Mint, LPM is pleased to present a brand new series with the theme of Australian Treasure Shipwrecks. For the first time in bullion, the series will feature coins that are triangular-shaped in size. The first in the series of four features the Batavia, one of Australian’s most infamous shipwrecks.

STORY OF THE BATAVIA

In 1628, The Batavia set sail on her maiden voyage to the East Indies carrying a wealth of silver coins and jewels. Disaster struck on the 4th of June 1629 when the ship struck a reef in the Houtman Abrolhos off the coast of Western Australia. The ensuing chaos of the shipwreck resulted in a number of deaths from drowning with the remaining survivors scrambling to shore of the nearby islands.

1 ST TRIANGULAR-SHAPED BULLION COIN

Obverse The obverse design depicts the fighting between the survivors as a result of the mutiny and the Batavia before its ultimate demise.

Reverse The exquisite design of the reverse conveys two scenes to communicate the journey of the Batavia. With the image of the ship viewed upright, the Batavia is shown setting sail in its full glory.

Upside Down Flipping the coin to view the text of ‘1629’ and ‘Batavia’ upright depicts the ship in its final state capsized shortly after wrecking in 1629. The border encompassing the main design also incorporates unique design elements from the Batavia.