The emaSwati People R1 Gold Series
The ancestors of the EmaSwati people probably moved into the Mozambique area from the north prior to the 16th century. Fleeing attacks by the Zulu in the early 19th century, they settled in present-day Swaziland. In 1894, Swaziland became a protectorate of the Transvaal and in 1968 Swaziland achieved complete independence. The king became the head of state.
The traditional Swazi marriage is a long process involving several stages namely, “lobola” (payment of marriage dowry usually in the form of cattle), “kumekeza” (weeping of the bride), “kugcotshiswa libovu” (smearing of the bride with red ochre) and “kuteka” (a combination of the last two above). The traditional Swazi wedding or “umtsimba” usually takes place on a weekend in the dry season (June - August) and can take three days to complete with the highlight being the smearing of bride with ochre.

The R1 cultural coin for 2006 reflects a Swazi bride wearing a traditional bridal outfit which is made up of a togalike garment, called an “emahiya”, colourful beads and an elaborate head-dress, emphasising Swaziland's rich traditions and heritage. The obverse of the R1 Gold coin depicts the official South African Coat of Arms, the year “2006” and the words “South Africa” and “Ningizimu Afrika” (the siSwati words for South Africa).

Face value	Theme	Maximum mintage
R1	The emaSwati people	1000

ARTIST
Natanya van Niekerk – Marketing Manager and chief artist at the South African Mint designed the R1 gold coin.

ENGRAVERS
The obverse design was engraved by the South African Mint’s chief die-engraver, Arthur Sutherland. South African Mint resident die-engraver, A Minnie engraved the reverse design.