1 Burgers Pond, South African Republic, 1874

One (1) pond coin South African Republic, 1874 Obverse Image: Portrait of Thomas François Burgers facing left. Obverse Text: THOMAS FRANÇOIS BURGERS / 1874 Reverse Image: Coat of arms of the South African Republic. Reverse Text: ZUID AFRIKAANSCHE REPUBLIEK / EENDRAGT MAKKT MAGT South Africa is famous for its gold deposits. Before the unearthing of the major gold reefs in Witwatersrand starting in 1884, Boer settlers found small quantities of gold in the Transvaal area. In the 1870s, the president of the South African Republic (Transvaal), Thomas Burgers, sent some gold nuggets to England to have a small number of coins minted for the South African Republic. These gold coins feature Burgers’s portrait and are often referred to as “Staatsponden,” “Burgersponds,” or “Burgers sovereigns.” Burgers was widely criticized by members of his community for placing his own image on the coins, which was seen by some as vain and dictatorial. The coins were not widely used. Currently not on view