Operating in the San Francisco Bay Area between December 1968 and October 1969, the Zodiac Killer was a serial killer who has never been identified, like the infamous Jack the Ripper. There’s much debate over the extent of his murder spree. Officially, he had five victims, with two surviving, but he claimed to have killed 37 in total, with one later author speculatively putting the number at 49. As he was never apprehended, the true total will likely never be known.

He was only ever identified from a police composite sketch done in 1969, its accuracy open to debate. He gained increased notoriety from the phone calls and letters he taunted the police with, the latter written in a cypher code he claimed would identify him, He lied, although that wasn’t discovered until December 2020, when it was finally decrypted. Zodiac marked his letters with a target symbol. The case remains open to this day.

Spectres latest two-ounce coin dives right into the mystery surrounding this infamous case. The reverse face depicts the hooded killer, signifying the mystery around who he is, rather than any modus operandi on the Zodiac Killer’s part. He carries a gun, his preferred weapon, and on his front is a red-coloured depiction of his trademark symbol. Around the bottom of this face sits a number of newspaper articles, and around the top is a line dripping blood, the latter we feel being a little overdone and/or unnecessary. The background field contains his infamous code, which is a neat addition.

The obverse is a mix of the front page of a period newspaper, including that solitary witness sketch of him, and his coded letter sent on 08 November 1969, which is now known as Z-340. While this was eventually decrypted 51 years later, others still remain a mystery. The way the coin issue inscriptions have been incorporated into the newspaper are particularly clever.

The coin has a mintage of 500 pieces, and comes boxed in themed FBI packaging. A coin, managing to pack in a lot of the mythos and history around one of the most infamous killers in US history. Available to order now, if you want to buy from Spectres, please click the link below, and we’ll get a little bit at no cost to you. It should ship from mid-November.