2016-06-06 Mon

The South African Mint recently issued a sterling-silver R2 coin and a 2 ½ tickey for its latest collectible coin series celebrating one of their greatest scientific inventions - dolosse.

Dolosse are 20 tonne concrete blocks made of complex geometric shapes to protect harbour walls from the tides of the sea or the ocean. The coins fall under the theme “South African Inventions” with the reverse side of the R2 Crown showcasing people standing on a harbour wall, protected by a number of dolosse. A single dolos is depicted on the ‘2½c’ coin. The obverse features South Africa’s coat of arms, the year 2016 and ‘South Africa’ in all nine South African official languages including a protea. The coin also features the East London harbour engineer Eric Mowbray Merrifield and draughtsman Aubrey Kruger who developed the dolos.

Officials have stated that the latest laser technology has been used for the first time by South African mint to design the intricate details of the coins. These special coins were manufactured over a period of six months.

The South African Mint also has plans to release the next coin of the series in 2017 to commemorate the fiftieth anniversary of the first heart transplant, performed by South African Christiaan Barnard.