Krugerrand

The Krugerrand is a South African gold coin, first minted in 1967 to help market South African gold. The coin, produced by the South African Mint, proved popular and by 1980 the Krugerrand accounted for 90% of the global gold coin market. The name itself is a compound of "Kruger" (the man depicted on the obverse) and "rand", the South African unit of currency. During the 1970s and 1980s some countries forbade import of the Krugerrand because of the association with the apartheid government of South Africa, which has since been abolished. The Krugerrand today is a popular coin among collectors.