Situated 250 miles from Tonga, the Republic of Minerva was conceived by a wealthy Nevada real estate mogul. According to the mogul, his organization, the Ocean Life Research Foundation, had raised $100 million to create a utopian society on Pacific reefs. His plan was to create a micro-nation without taxes, welfare or economic intervention, that lived chiefly off of tourism and fishing. In 1971, Minerva’s construction began by bringing barges of sand to the reefs to raise them out of the ocean. During a conference of neighboring states in which the mogul declared his intentions, Tonga had issued a claim over the land. At that point, the organization ignored the territorial claims to Minerva, and issued a declaration of independence, created a coin currency for this new nation, and launched into an experiment in nation building.

MINERVA COINS
MINERVA CURRENCY || MINERVA STAMPS

Obverse Reverse Prefix Inv Num Date Country Denom Topic Comments Fineness ASW Metal KM Loc Grade Value $
FC
R

18850
1973 MINERVA 35 Dollars Fantasy Coinage 0.65 Grams Gold 0.999 0.7708 Gold/Silver #X #1 Proof $125.00
Date of last update: 09/30/21