REVISING COIN DESIGN

Press, Volume CV, Issue 30976, 4 February 1966, Page 1

REVISING COIN DESIGN

(From Our Own Reporter)

WELLINGTON, February 3.

“What is your own opinion of the decimal coinage designs?” the Parliamentary Under-Secretary to the Minister of Finance (Mr Muldoon) was asked during an interview today.

He paused for 20 seconds before replying: “I like the concept, in that it has more appeal to it than producing a set of suitably pictorial coins. I shall be most interested to note the public reaction when the coins are finally produced.”

had come from artists and numismatists. This was interesting when it was.realised that the Government had deliberately weighed the committee with artists and numismatists in order to get their specialised point of view. Bird Series Asked if the original concept would be followed, Mr Muldoon said: “We can at this tage produce a complete set of coins depicting New Zealand birds. This would be non-controversial, but would be clearly open to the criticism that we are lacking in imagination.’ He said the concept would be redrawn. The idea in each coin had tended to get distorted in discussion. For instance, it was not intended to depict a Rugby player, but to produce a design showing the New Zealander’s proclivity for participating in sport. “He could just as easily have been a swimmer, a yachtsman, or even a tramper,” Mr Muldoon said,

“It just happened that the chosen design depicted a club football-player.” He agreed that the figures in two of the designs might be considered too static. One of the tasks to be done, he said, could be the putting of life into them.

Not League Players

“We shall try to get the design right according to concept,” he said. “If we cannot do this, we are quite prepared to submit alternatives to the Royal Mint.” Informed Opinion

Mr Muldoon said today that the only thing he could say was that the designs released were not the ones which would be used. Asked if he would consider withdrawing and replacing the designs, he said: “What we are doing is. getting new designs based on the concepts, and some entirely new designs. When this is done we shall go back to the advisory committee.” Mr Muldoon said he was interested to see that some of the most trenchant criticism

Mr Muldoon said that the idea of appointing an advisory committee arose in part from the desire to get informed opinion. “To get the real opinion of the public is difficult,” he added. “For instance, you soon know the coin the man in the street does not like, but how can you determine the coin he does like?”

What was required was a full set of coins which were not only acceptable to the public, but were passed as good coins by the Royal Mint, the designers had been wellknown and respected people. “I think it would be fair to say that Mr F. A. Shurrock is regarded as one of New Zealand’s best-known sculptors,” Mr Muldoon said. “He is thoroughly familiar with the three - dimensional approach to art and coinage design. “One of the coins has been redrawn as many as 12 times, to get minor details correct.” Mr Muldoon said no action would be taken against those responsible for leaking the designs to the three evening newspapers.

“Standard Low”

“The designs are terrible—banal,” the president of the Royal New Zealand Numismatic Society, Mr B. Hamlin, said today, the Press Association reported. “If these were the best designs submitted by the Coinage Design Advisory Committee the standard must have been very low,” he said.

There was not one of the New Zealand designs that he fully approved. The 10c Maori carving had his approval, however, for its authenticity, but he said that the Royal Mint Advisory Committee’s suggestion to move down the manaias would spoil the authenticity because these

were bird spirits talking into the ears of the carved face.

The figure on the new 20cent coin could not possibly be identified as a Rugby League player because of the hooped jersey, the secretary of the New Zealand league, Mr E. J. Knowling, today. “Thank goodness,” he said. “All League jerseys have Vnecks or irregular hoops.”