London is a city of incredible architecture and history, and one of its most recognisable structures is the English Baroque cathedral completed in 1710, and designed by Sir Christopher Wren. St Paul’s Cathedral was built after the area was destroyed by the 1666 Great Fire of London. The site had previously been the location of a church dedicated to Saint Paul as far back as 604 CE, but the current structure is an iconic part of the modern London skyline. It’s an incredible building, well worth a visit. I actually did some stonework in one of the crypts about 25 years ago, and the sense of history is palpable.

The coin fully utilises CIT’s smartminting to give us generous levels of high relief on both faces. The coin depicts a cross-section through the building on its reverse face, displaying details of both the interior and exterior. An outline plan of the cathedral is engraved at top-right, opposite is its phoenix crest, under which is inscribed Resurgam (I will rise again).

The obverse concentrates on the main facade of the building which aligns with the outline on the reverse face. Very clever. Both sides are struck with a mix of proof and silk finishes, and are heavily rose-gilded. It’s a hugely impressive release, and easily my favourite new issue of this quarterly release tranche.

Great Asia is the second release in the Hidden Treasure series, following Europe. The idea here is simple enough, but the execution must be a real task to do, while maintaining a coherent composition at the end. The design consists of a grouping of 23 different Asian elements, almost all of them monuments. You can see them all detailed out on the image above. The selected structures that are gilded help to differentiate the mix by offering visual breaks, letting you focus more clearly on individual elements.

The gilded Taj Mahal sits at the centre, giving the eye a good focal point, but not gaining prominence over the other structures depicted. It’s all very impressive, and set against the backdrop of Mount Everest. A fascinating series for lovers of cultural architecture, and one that I feel will grow into something special when complete. See if you can find the hidden cat!

Following a terrific portrayal of Mount Rushmore last year, the second issue in the World Landmarks series is another architectural icon, London’s Tower Bridge. Built from 1886, and opened by the Prince and Princess of Wales in 1894, this bascule and suspension bridge is one of five managed by the City Bridge Foundation, which itself pre-dates the opening of this bridge by 600 years, having been set up through Royal Charter by Edward I.

This beautiful bridge is 290 metres long, and features a pair of 65 metre tall towers joined by walkways. The central section can be raised to allow larger ships to pass further up the Thames, and frequently does so. Still in use, over 40,000 vehicle crossings occur every day. Over 50 proposals for its design were rejected before they settled on the current one.

An affordable, half-ounce silver coin series, the coin depicts the bridge as if painted in watercolours, and like the earlier Mount Rushmore design, is beautifully executed. It’s enhanced by a subtle paper texture struck into the coin surface, and the whole effect is quite sublime.

“Legends of the Seas” began last year with Santa Maria, and returns withone of the most famous vessels of exploration in history, the three-masted barquentine Endurance, under the command of Sir Ernest Shackleton. Tasked with the Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition (1914–1917) exploring the Antarctic continent, in January 1915 she became trapped in pack ice in the Weddell Sea. Despite attempts to free her, she was crushed by the ice and sank in November that year.

The men spent months camping on ice floes, before sailing to Elephant Island in April 1916The 28-man crew, however, fought on, with Shackleton and five of his crew sailing a small lifeboat (the James Caird) 800 miles across the brutal seas, after which they landed at South Georgia. A Chilean tugboat called Yelcho, took them back to rescue the others, and all 28 men were saved in August 1916. It was an incredible feat of survival. The ship was located in March 2022 some 3,008 meters below the surface, and in an outstanding state of preservation. She remains undisturbed. Shackleton returned in 1921, but died of a heart attack on South Georgia, where he remains buried in Grytviken cemetary.

The one-ounce coin is a straight proof strike with colour highlights. It depicts the ship encased in the ice and listing heavily to one side. In the background is a coloured portrait of Shackleton. It all has lots of detail, and the ship perspective is handled well. A very nice encapsulation of one of the most heroic acts of survival of the 20th century.