The way of the warrior is the popular interpretation of Bushido, but the reality is far more nuanced than that. Birthed in Neo-Confucianism during the Edo period in Japan (1603–1868), it was meant to temper the more aggressive characteristic of the Samurai class with a grounding in wisdom and serenity. It can trace its roots back to the 8th century, but was only formalised by the Tokugawa shogunates of the Edo period.

This new two-ounce silver coin from the Mint of Poland is meant to encapsulate the nature of Samurai and Bushido, using a pair of tigers in a Yin-Yang inspired setting. One of them, the larger of the two, is gilded, with the rest of the coin antique-finished. Being completely honest, I’m not sure what the message is here. It seems confused, and the background setting is unfocused and less than optimally laid out. The tigers are well done anatomically, but the design as a whole doesn’t work for me. You may disagree of course, and we’re confident the mint will produce a nice strike.

Presented in a latex ‘floating’ frame again, all in a themed sleeve, there’s little to criticise on the end product outside of the highly subjective aesthetics, which you may love. A miss for me, however. Available now, it has a mintage of 500 pieces.

LINKS: MINT OF POLAND