Seven Coins, One Nation: The 2026 Federation Collection
On 1 January 1901, six self-governing colonies became one country. Growing calls in the late 19th century for the colonies to unite culminated in a series of referendums, which eventually passed in all six colonies. The first Parliament was opened in Melbourne four months later. It's worth pausing on that — the federation of Australia wasn't inevitable. It took years of negotiation, political argument, and public votes across six separate colonies before it happened.
This year marks 125 years since. The Royal Australian Mint has marked the anniversary with a seven-coin uncirculated collection, and it's one of the more thoughtfully put-together releases I've seen from them in a while.
What's in the set
Six coins represent the six colonies that became states at Federation — New South Wales, Tasmania, Western Australia, South Australia, Victoria, and Queensland. A seventh coin represents the Commonwealth of Australia itself.
We are so grateful to have been able to get more stock of this set. It's popular with our customers. What we have now is the last of the stock available to us.
Each state coin features the colony's distinctive faunal and floral emblems. The New South Wales and South Australia coins also include emblems of the Australian Capital Territory and Northern Territory respectively — territories formed in 1911 that were part of those states at the time of Federation. That detail matters. It's easy to forget that the ACT and Northern Territory didn't exist as separate entities in 1901. Their inclusion here reflects the actual geography of Federation, not a simplified version of it.
The denomination is a rarely seen 25 cents for the six state coins, and $1 for the Commonwealth coin — a deliberate choice to make this set feel distinct from anything in everyday circulation.
Packaging and presentation
All coins are housed in an exclusive presentation tin, with each coin individually presented on its own card. The tin is specific to this release. It's the kind of packaging that makes this easy to give as a gift without anything additional needed.
The numbers
Mintage is strictly limited to 12,500 for each coin. That's modest for a nationally significant anniversary release. This won't be widely available in a few years.
Who this suits
History collectors are the obvious fit, but this also works well for anyone building a complete RAM collection, or for a gift to mark an Australian milestone. The combination of rarely used denominations, state-specific designs, and a limited tin makes it more considered than a standard uncirculated set.
Find it at Mint Coin Shop.
