Numiscollect concludes its Japanese-inspired, four-coin series, ‘Manga Seasons’ with the coming of Winter and Spring

Numiscollect’s attractive Manga Seasons series wraps up with the launch of the second pair of coins, Winter and Spring. Taking the very distinctive artistic style that defines this Japanese art-form, each of the coins features an iconic big-eyed young woman and places them in an idyllic scene of one of the four seasons.

You can see the first pair of coins at the bottom of this article, but just below here are Winter and Spring. For the former, our Manga Girl is dressed for the cold and snow falls around here. In the latter, it’s petals that are falling. The girl, and a small part of the background foliage, is brightly coloured in the modern manga style. The common, Cook Islands obverse returns.

We see so few coins in this genre, quite extraordinary given the huge popularity of manga, even outside of Asia. Full marks to Numiscollect for releasing these, and we hope it inspires others to tap into that almost bottomless well of striking imagery that characterises it. Each of these coins comes individually boxed, and with a Certificate of Authenticity. The mintage is capped at 999 pieces, and they should be available to order now.

WHAT IS MANGA?

The term ‘Manga’ comes from a Japanese word formed from two kanji, meaning, roughly, ‘whimsical pictures’. Manga is certainly that, drawing from a style popular in late-19th century Japan.

It’s hard to grasp just how popular Manga is, especially in its homeland, where in 1995 it generated almost $7b USD, with almost 2 billion copies (approx 15 issues per person annually!) sold. It remains a multi-billion dollar industry, more popular than ever, and has taken that popularity abroad, notably in the US, where it outsells other comics massively, and Europe, aided by the abundant selection on digital platforms.

Because Manga is produced in huge quantities (comics are like phone directories in many cases), they’re generally black & white, although colour remains popular. In Japan, Manga is read by people of all ages and walks of life. The themes are bountiful: action, adventure, business and commerce, comedy, detective, drama, historical, horror, mystery, romance, science-fiction and fantasy, erotica (hentai and ecchi), sports and games, and suspense, among others. Basically, if you can name it, Manga has it!

As well as comics, the genre has exploded on film, and on television, where global streaming platforms have made programmes easily accessible in other countries. Indeed, adaptations are being financed by Western companies regularly, eager to satiate the huge demand for it. Sometimes, original film/TV works in the genre go full circle, making the jump back to comic form.

Manga comics are an institution in Japan, where hotels and public buildings often having libraries of them for people to read. Issues can go from 200, to almost 900 pages in size, printed on cheap paper, and filled with self-contained stories, and latest chapters of ongoing stories. A single Manga comic can hold dozens of different stories, chapters, or strips, and are published monthly.

SPECIFICATION PER COIN
DENOMINATION $5 Cook Islands
COMPOSITION 0.999 silver
WEIGHT 31.1 grams
DIMENSIONS 38.61 mm
FINISH Proof
MODIFICATIONS Colour
MINTAGE 999
BOX / C.O.A. Yes / Yes