Deadly & Dangerous returns as a six-coin minigold set from Downies
One of the most sought after and hotly anticipated series in the coin world back around its late noughties debut, Deadly & Dangerous rose to prominence on the back of a now iconic Red-back Spider design. A new one-ounce silver has been issued every year since 2006 and the latest, the Lionfish, is the fourteenth to join the series. Struck by the Perth Mint for Australian dealer Downies, the series continues to find fans, although is no longer the powerhouse it once was.
Downies have decided to expand the scope of the series with a foray into the popular minigold market. They’ve chosen six animals previously showcased and using all-new designs, issued a six-coin set of cleanly struck half-gram fine gold coins. The first five silver coins are represented here, but the sixth is strangely absent, with the producer choosing the 2018 Dingo over the expected Box Jellyfish.
We like the artwork chosen for these. To be honest, in most cases we prefer the base design to those used on the originals, although the 2006 spider coin is one we feel will never grow old. The shark, crocodile and jellyfish coins are very well realised for their 11 mm diameter. The common obverse remains the Ian Rank Broadley effigy of Queen Elizabeth II, but these are issued for Solomon Islands instead of the usual Tuvalu.
Not available individually, if you want these, it will be as a set of all six. The coins are not the usual 0.9999 gold, but only 14kt (0.580). A nice big version of the pretty gloss-black wood box holds the set and there will be a maximum of 5,000 sets available. They can be ordered now directly from Downies for just shy of 600 AUD.
| SPECIFICATION | |
| DENOMINATION | $1 Solomon Islands |
| COMPOSITION | 0.5850 gold |
| WEIGHT | 0.5 grams |
| DIMENSIONS | 11.0 mm |
| FINISH | Prooflike |
| MODIFICATIONS | None |
| MINTAGE | 5,000 |
| BOX / COA | Yes / Yes |
Stupid. In this climate, they’ll be lucky if they sell 300-500, forget 5000. They’re minting like it is 2010. Mik, you need to give them a kick in the arse, and tell them to get their head out of the sand and wake up to the reality of 5000 pieces is like a million back in the day…#stupidpeople.
I don’t think the expectation is they will sell 5,000 sets though, Bob. It’s like the NZ Mint foils with their 50,000 mintage, More a subtle statement that these will be available for some time. The Perth Mint constantly issue coins with a 5,000 mintage, even though previous issues in the same series barely break 25% of that.They’re struck in batches, so I think it’s just a way to cover the bases in case something is a surprise hit. I don’t understand the reasoning in this case. As you say, setting the mintage at perhaps 500, or even 1,000, would surely generate more interest?