2000 Mule Dollar

Specifications

Denomination: 1 dollar (mule with 10-cent obverse)
Series: Decimal one dollar — mob of roos (error)
Designer: Stuart Devlin (reverse); 2000 ten-cent obverse die
Years of issue: 2000
Composition: 92% Copper, 2% Nickel, 6% Other
Weight: 9 g
Diameter: 25 mm
Edge: Interrupted reeding
Mintage: 6000
Key mintages: Estimated ~6,000 struck (NAA journal); Downies estimate 400–6,000. True mintage unknown; all examples entered circulation.

Melt value: $0.12copper $0.44/ozt · prices as of Sep 16, 2026

AI-generated illustration (no usable free real photo found). Design reference: Journal of the Numismatic Association of Australia (Harris & Nemtsas) and numismaticnews.net.

The $1 coin struck with a 10-cent obverse — Australia's most famous modern mint error, still hiding in pocket change.

History

A ‘mule’ is created when the dies used to mint a coin were never intended to be used together; the 2000 $1/10c mule is the most famous Australian example (Journal of the Numismatic Association of Australia — Harris & Nemtsas, accessed 2026-09-16).
The coin was struck on a regular aluminium-bronze dollar planchet with the familiar ‘mob of roos’ reverse, but the obverse was struck with an Australian 10-cent obverse die — slightly smaller than the dollar die — producing the key identifier: a thick, obvious double rim around the Queen’s portrait (JNAA — Harris & Nemtsas, accessed 2026-09-16).
The estimated mintage is 6,000 coins (JNAA); Downies estimates 400–6,000, and the true mintage is unknown — every example known was found in circulation (JNAA; coinsandaustralia.com, accessed 2026-09-16).
The mules surfaced first in Perth, where keen ‘noodlers’ found them in their hundreds over many weeks at the Burswood Casino; they are still found in change today (JNAA — Harris & Nemtsas, accessed 2026-09-16).
According to an anonymous Mint employee, the Royal Australian Mint wanted to destroy all the mules when the mistake was discovered during production (coinsandaustralia.com, accessed 2026-09-16).
Because the smaller 10c die was used, the obverse strike is often off-centre, shifting the portrait toward the top of the coin; well-centred examples tend to fetch more (numismaticnews.net, accessed 2026-09-16).
The mule’s fame has spawned counterfeits on eBay: fakes are perfectly centred with a narrow double rim and coarse ‘spaghetti-like’ hair detail, while genuine mules show fine detail and usually an off-centre strike (The Australian Coin Collecting Blog, accessed 2026-09-16).
For context, the standard 2000 $1 had a circulation mintage of 7,592,000 coins per the Royal Australian Mint’s 2000–01 annual report (onlinecoin.club, accessed 2026-09-16).

Key dates and varieties

2000 mule ($1/10c) — est. ~6,000 struck (JNAA); Downies estimate 400–6,000; true mintage unknown (coinsandaustralia.com)
2000 standard $1 — 7,592,000 circulation coins dated 2000 (RAM annual report via onlinecoin.club)
Off-centre mules — the double rim is equally off-centre; well-centred examples fetch more (numismaticnews.net)

Specifications

Composition: Aluminium bronze: 92% copper, 6% aluminium, 2% nickel (CoinNews via Royal Australian Mint; coinsandaustralia.com)
Designers: Reverse: Stuart Devlin (mob of roos); obverse: the 2000 10-cent obverse die (JNAA — Harris & Nemtsas)
Diameter: 25 mm (coinsandaustralia.com; onlinecoin.club)
Edge: Milled interrupted, in seven sections (onlinecoin.club)
Weight: 9 g (coinsandaustralia.com; onlinecoin.club)

Collector notes

The thick double rim on the obverse is the diagnostic — but compare it against known genuine examples, because fakes exaggerate or narrow it.
Genuine mules are usually off-centre on the obverse; a perfectly centred ‘mint state’ example is a red flag for a counterfeit (The Australian Coin Collecting Blog).
Check the hair detail: genuine mules have fine detail; fakes show coarse ‘spaghetti-like’ hair (The Australian Coin Collecting Blog).
Buy certified (PCGS/NGC) — a dealer report citing PCGS data noted 293 mules graded across all grades with only five in MS64 and none finer, so mint-state examples are genuinely scarce (Drake Sterling).
Verify the edge: the genuine $1 edge is interrupted milling in seven sections (onlinecoin.club).