An extremely rare and highly collectable, authentic Australian penny went under the hammer on Sunday evening at Lloyds Auctions which has sold for $60k, breaking an Australian record.

This penny is the lowest mintage pre-decimal Australian coin in existence, in good condition featuring partial diamond and six pearls on King George V’s crown.

“This penny has not only broken a record at Lloyds Auctions, but we believe it has broken an Australian auction record based on its grade, selling for $60k,” said Mr. Lee Hames, Chief Operations Officer for Lloyds Auctions

“Our previous record for a 1930s penny was $30k which we auctioned last year, and in 12 months the price has now doubled at auction,” continued Mr. Hames.

The penny was a product of the Great Depression where there was such deflation in 1929 due to Australia’s economy shrinking significantly causing a lower demand for currency, with no penny’s being ordered to be minted by the Government at that time.

However, due to the ‘accidental’ minting of the 1930 penny, there ended up being 3000 produced, but only around 1500 ended up in circulation, with many of these coins being damaged and discarded over the years, it is unknown exactly how many are in collectors’ hands today.

“A once by-product of economic depression is now a symbol of prosperity, the ultimate cherry on top for any coin collector,” said Mr. Hames.

“We have been seeing an influx of collectables come into Lloyds Auctions with people wanting to sell their old or valued treasures to make some extra cash, and we encourage people to bring in their collectables to be valued,” said Mr. Hames.