We’re kicking off this round-up with the first in a new series called ‘Divine Music’, which links the heavenly world with musical instruments. The debut issue is this very pretty guitar-shaped coin, ‘played’ by a beautiful, winged, female angel. The front of the instrument is lavishly decorated with representations of soundwaves and musical notes. This face is absolutely packed with detail, from the wings to the strings.

On the obverse, the wings remain, although the angel is absent. Instead, there’s a small cherubic figure. Unusually, this isn’t the back of a guitar, but another front, complete with strings. The coin, struck in two-ounces of fine silver, is antique finished, and is otherwise free of gimmickry, something we think is for the better, given the elegance of the design. A super release, it has a certain joy to it.

This one is full-on nuts! Depicting an asylum, much like the infamous Arkham Asylum of Gotham City fame, the main focus isn’t a patient, but the doctor, a particularly unsavourable one. MK have employed lots of tricks to bring him to life, not least of which is some impressive high-relief. We’ll let them describe the rest – A Journey Through Time: Morning, Afternoon, Evening, and Night

Morning: As the sun rises, the thermal ink reveals the coin’s sharpest details, uncovering the stark reality of the asylum. The light of day exposes the worn walls, broken tools, and hauntingly lifelike features of the deranged doctor. This clarity symbolizes the asylum’s disturbing truths, now visible to the world.

Afternoon: Under the afternoon light, the coin exhibits its raw metallic brilliance, as if the asylum is basking in the heat of the sun. This warmth activates the thermal ink, drawing out intricate details in a surreal blend of clarity and shadows, reflecting the lives trapped within the asylum’s confines.

Evening: As the daylight fades, the UV glow begins its magic. The asylum transforms into a place of sinister mystery, with eerie blue highlights and flickering shadows. The atmosphere deepens, evoking the chilling stories of spirits and echoes of tormented souls.

Night: In total darkness, the glow-in-the-dark elements take centre stage. The asylum comes alive with an otherworldly luminescence. Windows flicker green, doors hint at escape routes, and the malevolent red eye of the asylum’s central figure pierces through the night. It’s a haunting reminder of the asylum’s eternal grip on its inhabitants.

The obverse is more generic, depicting an abandoned room, but it does utilise MK’s UV-enamel to give it that eerie glow when the lights dim. A unique design, it’s one of our favourites from MK of late, and one of the few to employ a copper core for that hefty thickness.

This is the second in MK’s ‘Norse Blessing’ series, following an earlier Frigg design that we covered back in August. We think this one is superior, and Hel, the Norse goddess of the underworld, is stunningly realised here. MK are one of the few that can really do human faces well on coins, and this reinforces that view. It’s a clean reverse, enhanced only with a thermal ink application, that accentuates the two sides of her nature.

The obverse of the coin is more dramatic, employing a vibrant glow-in-the-dark application, almost looking like supernatural flames in reduced lighting. In normal lighting, the feel is completely different, again, showcasing the duality of the goddess. All told, a very attractive coin.

Another second in a series release is Athena, following a Sirenes coin that debuted back in June. Again, we like this second release better than the first, and the depiction of the Greek goddess, enhanced with gold foil in the background, is first-class. Layers of high-relief, and detail covering every surface, the reverse is a superb, if unusual realisation of a Norse deity.

The obverse is less impressive, but nevertheless, still a good scene, especially the way the owl has been semi-hidden in the background, this bird inextricably linked with her in Greek mythology, of course. The use of thermal ink on both faces looks intriguing, although we’ve yet to see the effect in hand.

Finally, we have the debut of a new five-coin series called ‘Legends of the Serpentine’, that will feature creatures of legend related to snakes and lizards. The first issue is the Basilisk, often referred to as the ‘King of Snakes’, and one able to destroy other creatures with its gaze alone. It’s a creation of European mythology, dating back to ancient times, with one of the first noted references being by the famed Roman historian, Pliny the Elder.

On the coin, it’s shown in a hybridised form, mixed with a human head, and entangled with a pentagram, so not in the original ancient form. There’s good use of high-relief, and MK’s signature UV enamel gives it an eerie glow in subdued light.

We particularly like the obverse, with a more natural depiction of an actual basilisk, which is a lizard reaching up to 75 cm in length, and common in Central and South America. It isn’t a particularly accurate depiction (the actual lizard is lightly built) , but there’s some terrific colouration. A fine design, but one facing intense competition from within MK’s own portfolio.