HARBOUR OF LIFE (LAND)

A three year joint program the Royal Australian Mint and The Perth Mint struck sixteen different 99.9% pure silver five dollar proofs for the Sydney Olympics dated 2000. Each coin has the edge lettering GAMES OF THE XXVII OLYMPIAD.

Stuart Devlin's original concept description:

A central motif showing the Sydney Opera House will be surrounded by a border comprising many other Sydney buildings both old and new radiating towards the centre.

His comments on the final design:

'For the central feature I chose the Sydney Opera House as an outstanding landmark. It is particularly appropriate for this series because it conveys aspects of the fascinating relationship between the sea and the land which characterise Sydney. The particular view of the Opera House which I used enabled me to relate the design to the circular nature of the coin better that the more traditional longer elevations. For the border I achieved my desire for richness by depicting the great visual diversity of Sydney.'second quality outer case