The 2013 set is the first complete range of Botswana’s new generation of coins: all seven denominations, from 5 thebe to 5 pula, were struck by the Royal Canadian Mint in Winnipeg and entered circulation on 28 February 2014.

The subjects stayed recognisable: the red-billed hornbill on the 5 thebe, the gemsbok on the 10 thebe, the zebu on the 25 thebe, the fish eagle with its catch on the 50 thebe and the mopane worm on the 5 pula. The big changes came in the pula coins. The 1 pula became round, its zebra now running against a backdrop of trees, and the 2 pula turned bimetallic for the first time, with the rhinoceros framed by sorghum heads, which also encircle the arms on the obverse.

All the coins use the Canadian multi-ply plating over a steel core. The Canadian mint had last filled an order for Botswana in 1991. With the arrival of this family, all coins of the earlier designs were demonetised from 28 August 2014.

Grade UNC: never circulated, no wear, mint lustre preserved. The set opens the modern chapter of Botswana’s coinage and sits well beside the 1998–2009 range it replaced.

If you are just starting a collection, the VPcoins catalogue makes it easy to find coins to build it around.