On the 9th of May 1927 Provisional Parliament House was opened by HRH The Duke of York later to become King George VI and the Duchess now Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother. It was originally intended to have a life of fifty years but was still the centre for Australian politics until completion of the new Parliament House building in 1988.

To commemorate the 70th anniversary of the Old Parliament House,  the Royal Australian Mint struck this proof one ounce fine silver $1 coin. Incorporated in the design is a replica of the 1927 Commemorative Florin issued at the time the building was opened. The coin is housed encapsulated in a green leatherette hinged lid presentation case protected by a colourful cardboard shipper and accompanied by a numbered certificate of authenticity.

In a repeat of the distribution method used for the 1996 Decimal 30th Anniversary 1oz silver coin,  collectors on the RAM mailing list were given a short period in which to order the coin with a limit of one coin per collector. Once the order period had closed and numbers were known the production run was completed striking only sufficient coins to fill orders.