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1 Dollar Portuguese Man O' War
| Issuer | Central Bank of Samoa |
|---|---|
| Year | 2022 |
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| Shape | Round |
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| Reverse description | The central field features a vivid full-colour applied image of a Portuguese Man O' War (Physalia physalis) depicted both above and below the ocean surface, showcasing its translucent pneumatophore (gas-filled float) above the waterline and its trailing venomous tentacles suspended beneath in deep blue waters. The naturalistic rendering captures the creature's distinctive iridescent blue and violet colouration with striking realism. The surrounding polished silver border bears the raised legends VENOMOUS & POISONOUS arcing across the upper field and PORTUGUESE MAN O' WAR along the lower periphery in bold block lettering. |
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| Reverse lettering | VENOMOUS & POISONOUS PORTUGUESE MAN O' WAR |
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| Additional information |
The Portuguese man o' war is not a jellyfish, though it is almost universally mistaken for one — it is a siphonophore, a colonial organism composed of genetically identical zooids so specialized they cannot survive independently. Samoa's choice to feature it reflects a broader Pacific regional push, particularly after 2020, to use numismatic issues as vehicles for marine conservation awareness rather than straightforward revenue generation.
KM#639 is part of a crowded field of Samoan silver fractionals competing for the same collector base, but the subject matter here is genuinely unusual for the series.