1988 Australian $2 Coin
The 1988 Australian $2 is a circulating $2 coin with 160.9 million made. Value band: face value. Here is how to recognize it, what makes one worth more and what to check on yours.
- Year
- 1988
- Circulation mintage
- 160,900,000
- Value band
- Face value
- Composition
- Aluminum bronze (92% copper, 6% aluminum, 2% nickel)
Original illustration of the coin's shape and metal. Tap to flip. Not a picture of the actual design.
Face value · Small premium · Collector premium · Significant rarity. We use bands because prices change daily.
What is a 1988 Australian $2 worth?
160.9 million were made, so the 1988 Australian $2 is easy to find. A circulated one is worth face value; collectors pay a little more only for uncirculated coins.
What would make yours worth more:
- Uncirculated condition
- A mint roll or set coin
- A genuine mint error
For market prices, look at recent sold results for the same coin in the same condition, not asking prices.
Quick answers
- Is the 1988 Australian $2 rare?
- No. 160.9 million were made, so circulated examples are worth face value.
- How many 1988 Australian $2 coins were made?
- 160,900,000 were struck for circulation.
- What is the 1988 Australian $2 made of?
- Aluminum bronze (92% copper, 6% aluminum, 2% nickel). It weighs 6.6 g and measures 20.5 mm.
- Is the 1988 Australian $2 still legal tender?
- Yes. Every $2 coin, colored commemoratives included, is legal tender in Australia.
The 1988 $2 coin in context
This is where the $2 coin begins. It entered circulation in June 1988 to replace the $2 note, which had been issued since decimal currency arrived in 1966. A note wears out far faster than a coin, which can stay in use for decades. Australia had already made the same move with the $1 coin in 1984. The changeover meant the Royal Australian Mint had to supply enough coins to take the place of every note being retired.
That explains the huge mintage. The 1988 date reached 160.9 million coins, more than double any later year and more than five times the 1989 figure. It was also the year of Australia's bicentenary, though the $2 coin itself carries no anniversary design. Old $2 notes were gradually taken out of use as banks returned them, but they were never demonetized, so a $2 note you find in a drawer is still legal tender. For many people the first thing they noticed was the size: the new coin was smaller than the $1 coin introduced four years earlier, a mismatch that still puzzles visitors today. Both coins share the same golden aluminum bronze.
How to recognize it
The reverse is Horst Hahne's design of an Aboriginal elder, modeled on Gwoya Jungarai, with the stars of the Southern Cross and grass trees in the background and a large numeral 2. Hahne's HH initials appear on the reverse of 1988 coins, so look for them. The obverse carries Raphael Maklouf's portrait of Queen Elizabeth II in the George IV State Diadem, with RDM below the neck and the legend ELIZABETH II AUSTRALIA 1988. The coin is 20.5 mm wide, weighs 6.6 g and has an interrupted milled edge. Compared with later coins of the same portrait, those initials are the detail that sets the first two years apart.
1988 Australian $2 by the numbers
By the numbers, the 1988 Australian $2 is the most common of 36 circulation dates of the $2 coin. The next scarcer is the 2009 Australian $2 (74.5 million).
Compared with the dates around it, the 1988 output was 5.1 times the 1989 figure.
What to check on your 1988 Australian $2
- Confirm the date 1988 and the portrait on the other side.
- Look for the designer's initials HH near the elder's arm on the design side; they appear on 1988 and 1989 coins.
- Check the edge: Australian $2 coins have interrupted milling, with sections of reeding separated by smooth gaps.
- Weigh it if you are unsure: a genuine $2 coin weighs 6.6 g and is 20.5 mm across.
With 160.9 million made, the 1988 is the most common $2 date by a wide margin and a circulated one is worth face value. That doesn't stop people keeping them as the first year of the coin, which is fair enough. The pieces that interest collectors are sharp uncirculated examples with full original luster, often taken from the Royal Australian Mint's annual sets, which can bring a small premium. A worn coin with flattened hair and faded stars is simply spending money. Coins still sealed in mint set packaging are best left there.
Raphael Maklouf portrait: the coin replaces the note (1988 to 1998)
Australia's $2 coin went into circulation in June 1988, taking over from the green $2 note that had been part of decimal currency since 1966. Notes wear out quickly when they pass through thousands of hands while a coin can stay in use for decades, so the swap made sense for a denomination people spent every day. It followed the $1 coin of 1984 and left Australia with a quirk that still catches visitors out: the $2 coin is smaller than the $1.
Horst Hahne designed the reverse and it has never changed. It shows an Aboriginal elder modeled on Gwoya Jungarai, the Central Australian man whose photograph had already appeared on a 1950 postage stamp, set against the stars of the Southern Cross and Australian grass trees. The coin measures 20.5 mm across, weighs 6.6 g and is struck in aluminum bronze with an interrupted milled edge, so the ridges run in bands with smooth gaps between them. On the 1988 and 1989 dates you'll find Hahne's HH initials on the reverse.
The obverse of this first run carries Raphael Maklouf's portrait of Queen Elizabeth II wearing the George IV State Diadem, with his RDM initials at the base of the neck. Output started with a flood of 160.9 million coins in 1988, enough to replace the notes, then dropped sharply. No circulation coins were struck in 1991 and the 1993 date stopped at 4.9 million, which makes it the scarce year of this portrait. The era closed with 8.7 million in 1998.
Mintage chart
Specifications
| Country | Australia |
|---|---|
| Denomination | 2 dollars |
| Issuer | Royal Australian Mint |
| Year | 1988 |
| Circulation mintage | 160,900,000 |
| Composition | Aluminum bronze (92% copper, 6% aluminum, 2% nickel) |
| Weight | 6.6 g |
| Diameter | 20.5 mm |
| Shape | Round |
| Edge | Interrupted milling |
Frequently asked questions
Is the 1988 $2 coin rare?
No. At 160.9 million it is the highest mintage $2 date of all, struck in bulk to replace the $2 note. Circulated coins are worth face value. Only very sharp uncirculated examples draw any interest beyond that and even then it's a small premium.
When did the $2 coin replace the $2 note?
The coin went into circulation in June 1988 and the note was phased out after that. Banks stopped reissuing notes as they came back in, but the $2 note was never demonetized and remains legal tender today.
Mintage figures: Australian two-dollar coin (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0), compiled from Royal Australian Mint figures. How we build these pages.