Australia makes $58.88 million coin

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PERTH, Australia, Oct. 28 (UPI) -- Australia's Perth Mint announced it has created a 1.1-ton gold bullion coin worth $58.88 million.

Ed Harbuz, chief executive officer of the mint, said artists and technical workers spent months designing the coin, which is 99.99 percent pure gold and measures about 31 1/2 inches wide and is more than 4 1/2 inches deep.

"To cast and handcraft a coin of this size and weight was an incredible challenge, one which few other mints would not even consider," Harbuz said.

The coin was created as part of the Australian Kangaroo Gold Bullion Coin Program, which has been making 2.2-pound coins using the same design for more than 20 years.

The mint previously held the record for the largest coins in the world with a set of 22-pound gold bullion coins, but lost the record to the Royal Canadian Mint, which made a 220-pound Gold Maple Leaf coin in 2007, The Wall Street Journal reported.

"No one's going to try to make a bigger one than this," said Nigel Moffatt, director of the Perth Mint.