The shell on the 2 rufiyaa is the Triton’s trumpet, a large sea snail from which Maldivians make the horn known as «sangu». The coin was struck from 1995, and 2007 was a turning point for it: the last nickel-brass pieces came out alongside a new variety of brass-plated steel that is attracted by a magnet.

Catalogued as KM# 88, this piece belongs to the older, non-magnetic nickel-brass version. One side shows the triton shell and the dates in two calendars with the legend «ދިވެހި ރާއްޖޭ» («Maldives»), the other the value above two ropes tied in a reef knot. The reeded edge carries the incuse lettering «REPUBLIC OF MALDIVES», a detail you only notice with the coin in hand.

The Triton’s trumpet grows up to 60 centimetres long and is one of the few animals that prey on the crown-of-thorns starfish, a threat to coral reefs. For a collection this is the final date of the 1995–2007 brass type and a companion to the magnetic coin of the same year.

AU-UNC grade: virtually no signs of circulation, at most a faint rub on the highest points of the relief, with the lustre almost fully preserved.

This coin is one of the items in the VPcoins catalogue, which brings together commemorative, circulation and bullion coins from around the world.