In 2005 the Royal Australian Mint struck 116.7 million ten-cent coins, one of the largest mintages in the coin’s entire history. Yet the reverse design remained the same as in 1966.

It is Stuart Devlin’s male lyrebird. The bird lives in the forests of south-eastern Australia, mostly imitates other species in its song, and the male’s tail forms the outline of a lyre in display.

The obverse is Ian Rank-Broadley’s Elizabeth II, the portrait Australia struck from 1999 to 2019. The Perth Mint notes its realism: the Queen is shown as a 70-year-old woman with poise and bearing.

The coin fills the 2005 slot in a date run of the Rank-Broadley period.

The stated grade is the F–VF range. This is a circulated coin: from even, pronounced wear with the main details and legend still legible (Fine) to noticeable wear on the high points with sharp main details and inscriptions (Very Fine).

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