Niue is a very small country in Polynesia that has been very busy over the recent decades issuing a large number of commemorative silver and gold proof coins for the international collectors market. Niue’s coins, which usually show Queen Elizabeth II on the obverse, tend to commemorate a very wide and often unexpected range of subjects on their reverse sides. In addition to dolphins, explorers, and world leaders, there have been Niue proof coins for Snoopy and Woodstock, and an extensive series of Pokemon coins, for example.
For regular circulation, Niue uses the coins of the New Zealand dollar, making coins marked “Niue” collector-only pieces. Niue coins also use dollar, and the country also issued its first coins in cents in the first years of the 21st century.
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Denominations of Niue coins
As might be expected from a country with as aggressive a collectors’ coin system as Niue, there are quite a few different denominations of coins that have been issued over the years. One interesting way to collect Niue coins is to try to get one of each denomination:
Cent coins: 5, 10, 20, 50
Dollar coins: 1, 2, 5, 10, 20, 25, 50, 100, 200, 250
While several of the smaller-value coins are made of copper-nickel, most Niue coins are silver or gold. Niue coins are often colored, enhancing their already-bold and graphically complex, arresting designs. There have also been some unusual shapes too — for example, some 7-sided $5 coins and some silver rectangular pieces. There is much to be found for Niue coin buyers in the market place.