EC8 bullion series heads to the volcanic island of Montserrat for the third time with a dicky bird in tow

A new addition to Scottsdale Mint’s epic Eastern Caribbean 8 bullion coin series debuts today, in what has become a covid-enforced, truncated release schedule. There are still three more issues to come in 2020 as we head into November. The little volcanic island of Montserrat is the subject location this time, and it’s a fine looking piece incorporating the fiery mountain the nation is known for, and one of its most colourful inhabitants, the Oriole.

We’ve been through this series so many times before that we’ll just point you in the direction of our comprehensive guide to the series, which features images of all four variants of the 21 issues to date, along with desriptions. Basically, it’s the same four 1 oz coins. The gold 0.9999 (2,500) and silver 0.999 (25,000) are back in bullion form, with coloured proof versions available for the collector in gold (100) and silver (500) as well. The gold bullion coin comes in Scottsdale’s innovative Certi-Lock packaging, while the proof pair come boxed. Available to order now, it should ship from 2-3 weeks time. We’ve been following EC8, so check out our comprehensive Bullion Coin Profile for more details.

WHERE TO BUY

MINTS DESCRIPTION

The 2020 ECCB Montserrat coin depicts the Montserrat Oriole, a vulnerable species of oriole endemic to this eastern Caribbean island. In stunning detail, the national bird of Montserrat is shown perched on a branch against a backdrop of the famous Soufriére Hills volcano. As of 1995, Soufriére Hills is an active volcano. Frequent eruptions have left half of the island uninhabitable and have also contributed to the Montserrat Oriole’s status as a vulnerable endangered species.

Between 1995 and 2000, two-thirds of the island’s population was forced to flee, primarily to the United Kingdom, leaving fewer than 1200 people on the island in 1997. The volcano exists within an exclusion zone which is not accessible to the public, yet the rest of the island remains one of the Eastern Caribbean’s highly sought tourist destinations.

SPECIFICATION
DENOMINATION $2 East Caribbean $2 East Caribbean $10 East Caribbean $10 East Caribbean
COMPOSITION 0.999 silver 0.999 silver 0.9999 gold 0.9999 gold
WEIGHT 31.1 grams 31.1 grams 31.1 grams 31.1 grams
DIAMETER 38.6 mm 38.6 mm 38.6 mm 38.6 mm
FINISH Brilliant uncirculated Proof Brilliant uncirculated Proof
MODIFICATIONS None Colour None Colour
MINTAGE 25,000 500 2,500 100
BOX / C.O.A. No / No Yes / Yes Certi-Lock Yes / Yes
SCOTTSDALE MINT