Sir Alexander Bustamante in profile and the line «FIRST PRIME MINISTER 1962-67»: this 1972 Jamaican dollar honours the man who led the first government of independent Jamaica.

The reverse shows Bustamante’s bust facing right with the legend «BUSTAMANTE · FIRST PRIME MINISTER 1962-67». The obverse carries the arms of Jamaica, the value «ONE DOLLAR» and the national motto «OUT OF MANY, ONE PEOPLE». It is a large-module coin, giving the portrait plenty of room.

The dates in the legend mark his years in office: Bustamante became the first Prime Minister in 1962, when Jamaica gained independence, and retired from politics in 1967. He had founded the Jamaica Labour Party in 1943, and in 1969 he was among the first to be named a National Hero of Jamaica.

Dollars of this type were struck by the Franklin Mint in the United States, and the numbers are modest: for 1972, 7,982 regular pieces and 17,000 proofs. For a collection of Jamaican dollars or a group devoted to Caribbean statesmen, it is a notable piece.

UNC grade: the coin never circulated, shows no wear and keeps its mint lustre; only minor storage marks are possible.

If this coin has caught your interest, the VPcoins catalogue has other issues from the same issuer worth seeing.