In January, we covered the launch of the latest bullion series from Germania Mint, called The Norns. Designed by artist Kinga Sabatowicz, we were very impressed with these, showing a very high standard of artwork, and you can read more about them and their backstory in that article. Germania Mint are one of the best in the business at ennobling coins, that is the enhancement with various metal platings, including gilding, and other techniques. Now they’ve brought that to The Norns.

The first of them, limited to just 500, is a three-coin set, each of which is partially ruthenium plated. Ruthenium is an increasingly used metal for this as it gives a nice dark appearance, which in combination with the gilded highlights and bare silver also used here, creates an attractive contrast. The gilded parts are intelligently chosen, following the thread that passes through the hands of the three deities, and tying the three coins together. The common obverse is equally impressive, without the silver showing through.

The set comes in a neat box that shows them off together as they were intended to be, and is a fitting showcase for the designs.

Also joining the range is this new composite design combining the three deities on a single coin. It’s being sold as part of Germania Mint’s first blind box release, which they’re calling a ‘Mystery Box’. The concept has become increasingly popular of late, and involves you purchasing a coin in a sealed box, without knowing exactly which one of the variants is inside it.

There are four variants here, with mintages that vary enormously, but adding up to 1,000 pieces in total. The most numerous, and the one I got from a sample box (images hopefully tomorrow), is the Black BU version, which, as the name suggests, is fully finished in black. There are 700 of these. Next up is the coloured version, of which there will be 200 produced. This shares an obverse with the Black variant. Next up is a ruthenium and silver version, which has that contrasty look on both faces. Finally, and with a mintage of just 10 pieces, is a ruthenium and gilded version, which also has that look on its obverse.

We’ve been quite critical of Agoro’s trading coin range because of the value, but fortunately, the other mints, including Agoro’s own blind box range, manage to avoid that by keeping the variants down to a sensible number, and by making the pricing sensible for the base coin, making the others a genuine bonus. It helps here, that the commonest coin is a fine looking piece in its own right. The composing of the three original coins into a single one is a success, in my opinion, and the whole mystery box thing seems harmless enough if you’re not buying many multiples of it. Both of these additions to The Norns range seem well judged and attractive. I’m hoping to finally get our AgAuShoot of the samples up tomorrow.