Sixpence (New Zealand coin)

Sixpence

New Zealand
Value	6d (£NZ)
Mass	2.38 g
Diameter	19.43 mm
Edge	Milled
Composition	1933–1946: 50% silver, 50% quaternary alloy 1947–1965: cupronickel (75% copper, 25% nickel)
Years of minting	1933–1965
Obverse
Design	Crowned bust of George V
Designer	Percy Metcalfe
Reverse
Design	Huia perched atop a branch.
Designer	George Kruger Gray

The New Zealand sixpence is a coin of the New Zealand pound issued from 1933 to 1965. Equal to twice a threepence or half a shilling, the sixpence was one of five denominations of silver coins introduced in the initial issue of New Zealand coinage in 1933. Early designs for the coin featuring spears and silver ferns were rejected by design committees in Britain and New Zealand. The coin's final reverse, designed by George Kruger Gray, features a female huia, an extinct New Zealand bird, perched atop a branch. Issued in 50% silver until a postwar rise in silver prices triggered a shift to cupronickel in 1947, the coin was minted with relative consistency until 1965, when it was discontinued following decimalisation and the adoption of the New Zealand dollar.