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Reverse of 1998 Samoa 50 Tala Gold Proof
Reverse of 1998 Western Samoa 50 Tala Gold Silver Proof

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Obverse of 1998 Western Samoa 50 Tala Gold Proof
Obverse of 1998 Western Samoa 50 Tala Gold Proof

Samoa
Discovered in 1772, and declared neutral by Britain, USA and Germany by the Berlin agreement of 1889, but came under German control in 1899. It was occupied by New Zealand between 1914 and 1962 under a United Nations mandate, when it became independent as Western Samoa. It dropped the "Western" in 1997 to become "Samoa". Rather worryingly, on the "Certificate of Authenticity" issued by Westminster Collection Ltd, which accompanies our specimen, the information section informs us that "Western Samoa consists of..." While we have to admire their marketing skills, we deplore their knowledge and accuracy, or lack of it. Still, it's a nice coin.

Samoa Coins
This is the first "Samoan" coin we have managed to photograph, and it qualifies because it is dated 1998.
It is a parti coin, and is half of a complementary pair, the other matching half being issued by Kiribati.
The word "tala" is undoubtedly from dollar or thaler.

Description
To follow
Another feature of interest is that the "Certificate", which appears to be for the complete two-part coin states the weight to be 1/8 oz, and we presume this is meant to indicate one eight of a troy ounce, because precious metals are weighed in troy ounces. What surprised us was that each half of the coin weights approximately one eighth of an ounce. The actual gold content of the Samoa half is actually only 0.1243 troy ounces, which is just a tiny fraction less than its stated weight. Of course, the certificate might be referring to its gross weight, but it lacks some clarity in this regard. Taking this possibility into account, we recalculated its gross weight in troy ounces, which comes to 0.124455, which means it is still short of its stated weight (or its mis-stated weight!).

Coin Specifications
DenominationDiameterWeightFinenessSilver
$5025*3.87109990.1243

Notes
Diameter = Diameter in millimetres.
* = 25 x Half
Weight = Weight in grams.
Silver = Actual fine silver content in troy ounces.

Western Samoa Coins For Sale
DateDenominationDescriptionMintageGradeAvailabilityPrice £Price $Price €
198610 TalaWWF World Wildlife Fund Collection - Samoan Fantail25,000FDCYes£$€
199210 TalaRoggeveen5,000Proof, about FDCYes£20$40€30
199410 TalaQueen Mother30,000Proof, about FDCYes£20$40€30

Notes
Mintage = Quantity issued, where known, otherwise issue limit.
Avail = Availability

Gold Coins
For gold coins from Western Samoa, please see our Tax Free Gold website.

Postage & Packing:
UK: At buyer's Risk £2.50 or
Fully Insured £6 (Usually by Royal Mail Special Delivery)
USA: Airmail at buyer's risk $10 or
Fully Insured $20
For further details, please see our Postage & Packing page.

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Coins Wanted
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