We can always rely on Mint of MK for something out of the ordinary, and their Halloween-themed release is no different. The Jack-o’-Lantern pumpkin has been an important part of the celebration of the darker world, and this interpretation is full of macabre fun. The style is brilliant, packed with high-relief, and shaped to suit. The colour is perfectly applied, and the frothy ‘mist’ in the eyes and mouth is a super-cool touch. When the lights go down, those eyes and the mouth, glow menacingly.

It doesn’t end there, however, and the obverse is also bang-on topic, and cleverly brought to life. The pumpkin sits in the middle of a ghostly scene, with a Gothic town in the background, and small pumpkins scattered liberally around the foreground. It all sits in a ‘hollow’ as if carved into the coin.

A top-notch coin for the upcoming holiday, and my personal favourite release for Halloween for years. The Mint of MK has a very unusual, eclectic style, and this coin is the perfect example of that.

Born on July 6, 1907, in Coyoacán, Mexico City, Frida’s life was marked by immense physical and emotional pain, which she channelled into her artwork. Frida’s paintings are characterized by vibrant colours, intricate symbolism, and raw, introspective themes. Through her self-portraits, she bared her soul, depicting her physical and psychological suffering, as well as her deep-rooted sense of identity and Mexican heritage. Her iconic unibrow, bold attire, and elaborate hairstyles became her signature, defying societal norms and challenging conventional beauty standards.

She’s appeared on a couple of numismatics in the past, but it seems that even the Perth Mint has chosen this fascinating artist for a new coin, utilising their popular 2oz, antiqued silver format. I’m going to come straight out and say it, I think this is one of the best looking coins this mint has done in 2024 – it’s just gorgeous. The design, by PM regular, Natasha Muhl, perfectly encapsulates the artist and her style.

It’s full of intricacy, with well-balanced colour highlighting, and it just looks right. Even as an art barbarian, I can appreciate the aesthetics here. Even the packaging is fully themed and attractive. Honestly, if you’re a Frida admirer, this one seems a no-brainer.

We usually keep these round-ups free of the pop-culture stuff, but sometimes, the artwork in that world is so good, we feel it has every right to stand alongside the more original stuff. That’s the case with Agoro’s (NZ Mint) latest release as part of their celebration of Batman’s 85th anniversary.

The uninitiated, or uninterested, may just think of comic book art as a series of small panels, often badly drawn (Liefield’s feet, anyone?), and generic. Nothing could be further from the truth. Much of it is just, plain and simply, outstanding. Some of the best centres around The Dark Knight, and this piece by Jock, a Scottish comic artist (and the principal Concept Designer for the awesome movie, Dredd), for Detective Comics #880, is one of them.

It features, of course, that ultra-iconic character, The Joker, made up in large part by bats in flight. The coin has been kept mercifully free of inscriptions, with just the anniversary logo in one corner. It’s a five-ounce coin, so unfortunately, isn’t a cheap purchase, but it does mean a nice sized canvas to show the work off.

Note to Agoro, how about a series of your premium foils featuring classic interpretations of this character? There are tons of them in the comic books…

T&S Coin continue to impress with their latest release launching today, ‘Gladiators’. This producer has a format of choice, and this issue follows that to the letter, being a 2oz, antiqued, coin with high-relief, gilding, and some colour highlights. This doesn’t appear to be part of a series, which we’re more than okay with.

As you can tell from the title, this one depicts gladiatorial combat from the Roman Imperial period. There’s quite the melee going on here, with the foreground featuring an intense battle between two fighters, one perhaps a Roman soldier, given the attire. This figure features a lot of gilded and coloured highlighting. The figure on the ground is calling out for mercy. In the stands behind, the Emperor, with his hand, and thumb, outstretched. The use of the thumb was called Pollice Verso.

The posing and setting draws inspiration from a classic painting by French artist Jean-Léon Gérôme, although there are significant differences in the realisation of the scene. It’s all more intense, intimate, and action-packed, aided by what looks to be some well-placed high-relief. Another fine release from this relatively young producer.

Scottsdale Mint’s ‘Biblical Series’ is, without question, one of the most ambitious coin ranges in modern numismatics. It isn’t the format, a two-ounce, high-relief, antique-finished coin is hardly unusual these days, nor is it the theme, because biblical coins are also quite common, but the scale of the series is quite something.

It was in 2015 that this range debuted, with The Exodus. The coin used the work of artist Gustave Dore for inspiration, who’d produced an extensive collection of woodcuts, pictorialising most of the most famous stories in the Bible. Scottsdale Mint stated this was the first in what would be a 60-coin, 10-year program. We were, of course, sceptical that it would go the distance, but not only have they done so, but they’ve maintained a universally high standard since then.

The two latest issues represent the 57th and 58th to date, and as they generally arrive in pairs, the next release will wrap it all up. These two look as great as always, especially the famous Jonah myth. If these are your thing, go check out our extensive Coin Series Profile.