Parthava Coin seeks to raise awareness of our impact on the natural world with Endangered Animals: Asiatic Cheetah

We’ve had an obvious affinity for coins that raise awareness of mankind’s deplorable impact on the natural world, from way back when we first went live in 2013 (also ironically a cheetah) and through dozens of coins since. It’s heart-warming to see the subject still hold considerable interest in the coin world, and to see us finally enforce positive steps to aid the beleaguered animals in their habitats.

The Asiatic cheetah survives only in remote areas of Iran, after being extensively hunted to extinction through the rest of the Arabian Peninsula and South Asia through the 20th century. Despite conservation attempts (protected areas, a ban on hunting, etc.) in January 2022, the Iranian Department of Environment estimates that only 12 Asiatic cheetahs remain in the wild. They are reaching out for international help, but the current geopolitical situation with Iran is not helping. Clearly, one of the most critically endangered creatures on Earth.

The coin is to be the first in a series highlighting the plight of such creatures, and is titled simply, ‘Endangered Animals’. The reverse face depicts a portrait of an Asiatic Cheetah, done in a painted art-style, and with a haunted expression. The body to the right has a motion blur effect, hinting at the animal’s legendary reputation for sprinting speed, while simultaneously tying in to the effect on the obverse.

That obverse depicts an hourglass, in the top half of which is a standing cheetah, gently disintegrating to a fine sand mist, and falling into the lower section. Here, it’s seen reforming into a cheetah-skin pattern, perhaps an indictment of the hunting for fur that led to this beautiful predator’s current plight. The background field has a map of the world on it, with Africa and Europe to the left of the hourglass, and Asia to the right. Whether future releases will change to match any animal from the America’s, for example, remains to be seen.

The coin is produced by CIT and struck by BH Mayer, hence the use of their proprietary Smartminting technology, so the pedigree, and hence the quality of the finished strike, will be as good as it gets. This three-ounce silver coin will come boxed, of course, and there will be a Certificate of Authenticity denoting it as one of the 350 minted. A great idea for a series, and a thoroughly unique take on the subject, marks it out as something different in a sea of clones. Available to order now, it will ship late in 2023.