EXCLUSIVE! Mint of Poland expands its mythology range with the launch of Cronus, the first of the Greek Titans

The Mint of Poland hasn’t finished with the ancient mythology genre on its coin ranges as there’s a new one coming. Instead of featuring the usual Greek Gods, this one goes back to those that came before in the old legends, the Titans. The parents of the more widely known gods in the Greek pantheon, the Titans were themselves the offspring of the original deities, Gaia and Uranus.

This is an early look, so we’ll go more in depth when the actual coin images arrive, but we’re all quite used to seeing Mint of Poland renders on their flagship ranges, and few have reason to complain when the finished article arises. Our initial impressions are very positive. It eschews the usual war theme for something more relaaxed, but loses nothing in the process. Those who know the legend of Cronus will understand the significance of the sickle (let’s just say his dad wasn’t going to be doing any more daddying….). The blue insert is supposedly the first time that something 3d-printed has been used on a coin, so we’d imagine it’s some form of resin or polymer.

We like the obverse as the mint has continued its recent trend of shrinking the effigy into a smaller space, while using the rest for a design that will likely remain common to the series. In this case, a family tree running from creation to the Olympian gods is laid out. The coin will be antique-finished and clearly employs some impressive high-relief detailing and a rimless design. Keeping up with the format of choice for this genre, this one is a 2oz, 45 mm diameter coin and has a mintage of 500. As I said, we’ll have another look when real world images are available, but our initial impressions are very positive and it’s a good-looking coin.

THE TITANS

In Greek mythology, the Titans and Titanesses  were members of the second generation of divine beings, descending from the primordial deities and preceding the Olympians. Based on Mount Othrys, the Titans most famously included the first twelve children of Gaia (Mother Earth) and Uranus (Father Sky). They ruled during the legendary Golden Age, and also comprised the first pantheon of Greek deities.

The first twelve Titans were the females Mnemosyne, Tethys, Theia, Phoebe, Rhea, and Themis and the males Oceanus, Hyperion, Coeus, Cronus, Crius, and Iapetus. They begat more Titans: Hyperion’s children Helios, Selene, and Eos; Coeus’ children Leto and Asteria; Iapetus’ sons Atlas, Prometheus, Epimetheus, and Menoetius; Oceanus’ daughter Metis; and Crius’ sons Astraeus, Pallas, and Perses. Just as Cronus overthrew his father Uranus, the Titans were overthrown by Cronus’s children (Zeus, Hades, Poseidon, Hestia, Hera and Demeter), in the Titanomachy (or “War of the Titans”).

Cronus was usually depicted with a harpe, scythe or a sickle, which was the instrument he used to castrate and depose Uranus, his father. In Athens, on the twelfth day of the Attic month of Hekatombaion, a festival called Kronia was held in honour of Cronus to celebrate the harvest, suggesting that, as a result of his association with the virtuous Golden Age, Cronus continued to preside as a patron of the harvest. Cronus was also identified in classical antiquity with the Roman deity Saturn.

SPECIFICATION
DENOMINATION $2 New Zealand (Niue)
COMPOSITION 0.999 silver
WEIGHT 62.2 grams
DIMENSIONS 45.0 mm
FINISH Antique
MODIFICATIONS High-relief, rimless, 3d printed insert
MINTAGE 500
BOX / COA Yes / Yes