We saw a good selection of coins last year that celebrated the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 moon landing, and in amongst the mix was a domed piece by the Pobjoy Mint. A two-ounce silver coin with plenty of high relief, it was a neat enough design, mixing various elements associated with the mission (flag, footprint, patches) and laying them on a lunar surface. It was issued for Ascension Island, appropriately [...]
The name Max Hell conjures up a warrior who vanquishes evil across multiple dimensions, but in reality, the eighteenth century Jesuit priest, astronomer and mathematician, Rudolf Maximilian Hell, had an altogether more academic life. Born in what was then the Kingdom of Hungary, but is now modern day Slovakia, Hell was the third of 22 children (That explains the surname...) He became the Director of the Vienna Observatory in 1756, going on to produce a [...]
Last year was a big coin event with the 50th anniversary of the amazing moon landing, undertaken on the Apollo 11 by Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin and Michael Collins. While that was a success, it wasn't all plain sailing for NASA. Just a year later, the Apollo 13 mission to return to the moon almost ended in tragedy and the death of all on board. A gas explosion meant the landing was [...]
One of the best small series of 2019 was the Czech Mint's outstanding Inventions of Leonardo. Four one-ounce silver coins portrayed some of the Renaissance masters incredibly forward looking inventions associated with flight and with blowing things up. This year has already seen a similar set, in gold as well, that focused on Notre Dame Cathedral, although that was sold only as a complete set. The mint has returned in 2020 with another set to [...]
Royal Australian Mint's latest coin set looks at the continents less cuddly wildlife from the inside There's no shortage of wildlife coins on the market, as we're sure you know. Everything from cheap and cheerful bullion coins to a 54kg elephant themed behemoth, have featured a nature theme, so it isn't often we see a new take. The Royal Australian Mint has debuted a new three coin range simply [...]
Big Brother is watching and the Austrian Mint's 18th silver niobium coin is in on it... The annual trip to Niobiumland by the Austrian Mint is here again and for 2020 it's a timely look at the world of surveillance, with 'Big Data'. As with all of the coins in this series, it's a clever take on the subject and a cool implementation. Nothing says 'Big Brother' more than [...]
March 14th is PiDay and APMEX have a limited run silver bullion coin to count on It seems the subjects for new bullion coins are getting more and more esoteric, and US megadealer APMEX has joined the increasingly eclectic selection with Pi. Pi is a mathematical constant that is defined as the ratio of a circle's diameter to its circumference. Yes, that eclectic...There is some logic to [...]
Fishing lure by 19th century innovator Julio T. Buel is celebrated by CIT in gold and silver Lake Bomoseen in Vermont is the birthplace of one of fishermen's greatest friends, the spoon lure. Dropping a silver spoon into the lake while eating lunch back in 1834, Julio T. Buel noticed a large fish grab the spinning object and he had a bit of a eureka! moment. Sawing off the [...]
Smartminting week: Striking view of a classic radial-engined aircraft is a showcase Anchor: Fair Winds was a very pretty coin launched last year by CIT Coin Invest at the World Money Fair. Utilising the high-relief ability inherent in smartminting, along with their relatively new Black Proof finish, it was a fine nautically-themed design (image at bottom). For 2020, we're seeing a second issue in the same style but heading [...]
WMF20: Captain Cooks epic voyages mapped on a extra large silver foil from Downies While the fledgling silver foil market has mainly focused on the ever increasing media franchise presence in the numismatic world, the early issues were more interesting and innovative in nature. First amongst these was a superb reproduction of a 1507-penned map by regarded cartographer, Martin Waldseemuller, by CIT.That was a 30g silver foil of an [...]
