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The Kerguelen
Archipelago is situated at 49°20' South, 70°20' East, midway between
Africa, Antarctica and Australia. Kerguelen is a French possession, lying
some 13,000 km from France in the Southern Indian Ocean. The main island
occupies measures roughly 120 km by 140 km, occupies 6,675 sq km and is
surrounded by around 300 other smaller islands, islets, reefs and rocks, forming an
archipelago of 7,215 sq km, located in the South Indian
Ocean, approximately 5310 kilometres southeast of
the southern tip of Africa. They were discovered in 1772 by the navigator C
Y J de Kerguelen-Trémarec, as part of the search for the great southern
continent. Scattered French
possessions in the Southern Ocean contribute to it's position as the country
with the largest Exclusive Economic Zone in the world. Kerguelen
Island itself is the largest of the island group, a sub-antarctic
island of volcanic origin, also aptly known as
Desolation Island. The archipelago is part of the
Terres Australes et Antarctiques Françaises (TAAF) - the French
Southern and Antarctic Territories - which also
includes the Crozet Archipelago, the tiny islands of Amsterdam/St-Paul,
and Terre Adélie (Adélieland)
on the Antarctic mainland. The coast of
Kerguelen is deeply indented with fjords, whilst the interior is heavily
glaciated. The highest point is Mount Ross, at 1,850m, in the south of the
island. |
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In 1981, Mr.
Zinkann also struck an undated 25 Francs Kerguelen Islands coin, but both
dies and the rim collar broke after only 3 had been made. He tried to
produced them in 90% tungsten. This happened due to the extreme hardness of
the experimental tungsten planchets. Reverse of the coin: Stylised Arrow
Symbol, Obverse of the coin: Stylised snowflake.
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In
December 2003, Mr. Zinkann designed a new Kerguelen Islands coin in Tantalum
1/4oz as 20 Francs. 1/4 oz is described on
the coin as "Quatrieme OZ" The
quantity/patterns of this coin were produced in the following metals. Reverse
of the coin: Enflamed Crown, Obverse of the coin: Field of Stars.
These coins were minted by:
Northwest Territory Mint. |
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| Metal |
Pieces |
Weight |
Diameter |
Edge |
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| Silver
(.999 Ag) |
90 |
5.2
grams |
22.00
mm |
Reeded |
| .995
Tantalum |
09 |
8.4
grams |
22.00
mm |
Reeded |
| .210
Gold (5 Karat) |
05 |
4.9
grams |
22.00
mm |
Reeded |
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In
2004, probably unhappy with the design produced in 2003, Mr. Zinkann made another slightly changed design of Kerguelen Islands
in Tantalum 1/5 oz. It has the same design as the 1/4 oz coin, except
"1/5 OZ" is written instead of "Quatrieme OZ" and empty
field of drawings were filled up. The quantity/patterns of this coin as as
follow.
These coins were also minted by:
Northwest Territory Mint. |
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Metal |
Pieces |
Weight |
Diameter |
Edge |
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| Silver
(.999 Ag) |
108 |
6.50
grams |
22.00
mm |
Reeded |
| .995
Tantalum |
38 |
6.60
grams |
22.00
mm |
Reeded |
| .210
Gold (5 Karat) |
01 |
4.90
grams |
22.00
mm |
Reeded |
| .750
Gold (18 Karat) |
04 |
5.80
grams |
22.00
mm |
Reeded |
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I purchased my 20
Francs 2003 reeded (segmented) edge 1/4 oz .995 Tantalum coin through Elizabeth
A. Zinkann. She is the younger sister of Mr. Fred R. Zinkann. |
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Information on Tantalum:
Symbol: Ta, Atomic Number: 73,
Atomic Weight: 180.9479, Density: 16.654 g/cc, Melting Point: 3017 degrees
C.
Tantalum is an extremely hard, durable gray-colored metal which has
excellent corrosion resistance. With the right lighting and surface texture
Tantalum shows a definite pinkish tinge to its metallic color. The metal has
many uses including electrolytic capacitors, in alloys to improve
properties, and surgical and dental tools. It is a good crucible material
due to its resistance to corrosive materials. Tantalum has an extremely high
melting point, exceeded only by osmium, rhenium and tungsten, and is also
very dense. |
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Micro-Nations |
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Chiefa Coins |
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