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The first R2 coin commemorates 125 years since Charlotte Maxeke became the first black South African woman to graduate with a university degree.
The second commemorates 70 years since the historic 1956 Women's March, when more than 20 000 women marched to the Union Buildings to protest apartheid pass laws.
The coin is part of the Milestones of Freedom programme, launched by President Cyril Ramaphosa in June 2026.
Together, these coins celebrate women whose courage, leadership and determination helped shape South Africa's history. They are also the first South African circulation coins to feature women.
Click the images below to flip the coin.
The design depicts four women from different cultural backgrounds positioned in the foreground, holding placards and facing the Union Buildings.
The perspective reinforces the act of resistance, showing the women not only as figures of leadership but also as participants in a deliberate and historic action aimed at challenging injustice.
The design places greater emphasis on the interaction between the protestors and the institution they confronted.
The design honours Charlotte Maxeke as the first black South African woman to earn a university degree.
Maxeke represents education as a means of empowerment, leadership and social transformation. The coin design showcases a profile silhouette cameo of Charlotte Maxeke, featuring her in an Edwardian collar from 1910.
The design was also inspired by the beads she wore in her early years, reflecting one of her iconic looks.
