The Royal Mint was established in Melbourne in 1872, although the first petition to establish a branch of the Royal Mint in the city was made in 1852, a year after the discovery of gold in Victoria. The first Australian branch of the Royal Mint was set up in Sydney in 1855, however it was 12 years before the Victoria Mint Act was passed by the Parliament in Melbourne. The mint occupied a site on the corner of Williams and La Trobe streets, the site of the original Victorian Exhibition Building of 1854. However, of the various buildings which made up the Mint only the main administration building now survives.

Albumen print. Fair tonal range and in good condition, pasted on original mount.