Deadly & Dangerous goes back to its beginning with a gold version of the iconic Red-Back Spider coin

A series over a decade old, Deadly & Dangerous was one of the first truly hit series to emanate from the Perth Mint when back in 2006 they issued the Red Back Spider coin. An immediate classic, the coin carried a quite outstanding piece of artwork whose depiction of an arachnid we don’t believe has ever been surpassed since. Twelve issues later, with a thirteenth on the way, the debut issue is still the highlight of the series so we’re glad to see it back for a revisit.

Struck in an ounce of fine 0.9999 gold, this is fortunately just a simple re-use of the original design – only the metal is different. It’s lost none of its impact in the last ten years and remains an eye-catching piece. We’re not usually fans of colour on gold coins, but this one gets away with it, aided by improvements in colour application technology since the original debuted. Subtle and sparing is definitely the way to do it.

The obverse carries the effigy of Queen Elizabeth II by Ian Rank Broadley – the original used the earlier one by Raphael Maklouf. Supplied in a good quality wooden box, a serialised certificate of authenticity is also enclosed. Priced at $2,995 AUD this isn’t a cheap coin, but with a mintage of just 150 pieces it isn’t a common one either. A nice homage to a coin that made a long-running series possible. Available to order now from Downies, the Australian dealer that has commissioned the series since its launch. We should have further news on Deadly & Dangerous in a few weeks time.