Polish science-fiction legend, Stanislaw Lem, embarks on a multi-year, multi-format coin program, starting with his opus, ‘Solaris’

On any list of the greatest science-fiction authors of all time, you’ll probably find Polish writer, Stanislaw Lem. Many of his works, including Solaris, the most well-known, dealt with a human failure to communicate with alien intelligence, and the idea, often eschewed by other authors, that perhaps humanity isn’t the pinnacle of civilisation in the universe, is in fact, flawed. His work is complex, with a different perspective on the genre, and all the better for it. He died in 2006 at the age of 84, leaving behind an impressive body of work, including philosophical treatise. His statement, that information technology drowns people in a glut of low-quality information, has been particularly prescient.

The Mint of Gdańsk is continuing its highlighting of Polish culture with a multi-year numismatic program showcasing the man and his works. The mint has already embarked on similar programmes with Andrzej Sapkowski’s The Witcher books, and footballer Robert Lewandowski, both of which cover multiple different formats, from gold coins to silver statues. Stanislaw Lem joins those in promoting Polish culture in numismatic circles. We like the Sapkowski and Lewandowski coins, but personally, I think these are on a whole other level.

Not all information on the range has been released yet, but it’s looking like two subsets per year, themed around the man or his works, and there will be 2 oz, and 200 gram silver coins (the first issued, and what we’re looking at here), 1/10 oz and 1 oz gold coins, and 5 oz and 1 kg silver coin statues. It’s certainly a varied mix, although with the smallest being a 2 oz silver, a higher end one. All are boxed with a Certificate of Authenticity, and mintages are sensible.

SUBSET I: STANISLAW LEM

FORMAT: 62g SILVER (REVERSE)

REVERSEUV GLOW

FORMAT: 62g SILVER (OBVERSE)

The first subset pair focus on Lem himself, and the artist Daniel Mroz, who worked extensively with him. The smaller issue features Lem alone, with his profile portrait in the mid, some literary tools in the foreground, and a Britannia BU-like guilloche pattern, in the background. The small rocket is red-gold gilded, and the background field metallic coloured. The dates on the bottom are UV printed, so will glow in a darkened environment.

The obverse features the coat-of-arms of Malta in a ring-fenced area, but the highlight is a fragment of a character from Daniel Mróz’s 1972 drawing for Stanisław Lem’s Cyberiad. It’s very unusual, but most importantly, is part of a style that the mint has adopted for the series. That style is what we could call retro-futurism, harkening back to the mid-20th century, perhaps from Fritz Lang’s Metropolis, until Star Wars debuted in 1979. However you want to define it, we think it looks awesome.

The second, larger coin (below), features a similar image of Lem, but joining him is the artist Daniel Mroz, noted for illustrating many covers for Stanislaw Lem’s novels. The art style remains the same on both the reverse, and the obverse, both exhibiting a ‘zooming out’ to encompass a wider look at a similar scene, much like Germania Mint did with its Allegories’ bullion coins, but in a more sophisticated manner.

It all looks very unique, with just a couple of gilded areas on the drawing implements in the pocket of Mroz. The mintage of this 200 gram coin is just 100 pieces.

FORMAT: 200g SILVER (REVERSE)

FORMAT: 200g SILVER (OBVERSE)

SUBSET II: SOLARIS

FORMAT: 62g SILVER (REVERSE)

REVERSEUV GLOW

FORMAT: 62g SILVER (OBVERSE)

The second subset takes a look at Stanislaw Lem’s most well-known work, Solaris. Made into a movie directed by Andrei Tarkovsky in 1972, remade in 2002 by Steven Soderburgh and starring George Clooney, the story has made it into the mainstream more than anything else he wrote, so is obviously a fine starting point for a numismatic retrospective. It tells the story of a science station orbiting the planet Solaris, on which there is a sentient ocean of gel. The main character, psychologist Kris Kelvin, is sent there, just in time to see the crew subjected to psychological phenomena caused by the ocean below.

The two-ounce design depicts Kelvin on the planet surface, scientific instrument in hand, standing before the ocean. A beautiful design, continuing that abstract, almost geometric style to great effect. Again, there’s some UV printing, and subtle gilding to compliment the metallic colour. The obverse has a piece of art inspired by Daniel Mroz’s work, although we’re unsure if it is specifically related to Solaris.

The 200 gram coin (below) is our favourite of the four, a terrific use of the quirky geometric art produces a great looking design. The mint describes it thus; “depicts the main character of the novel, psychologist Kris Kelvin, who arrives from Earth to a research station floating above the cytoplasmic ocean that covers the planet Solaris. On the surface of the planet, Kelvin will meet the most diverse products of the living ocean: multi-tiered lacy symmetriads, asymmetriads and mimoids. For the main character, contact with Solaris is also a journey into himself (symbolized by the portal visible on the coin): the conscious planet observes Kelvin (this meaning is signalled by the eye inscribed in the gate) and allows him to face his past, fears and desires.”

The obverse face has an expanded look at the artwork on the 2 oz version. The whole thing is very exquisite. Many will prefer the Lewandowski football series, or perhaps The Witcher coins, but for us, there is a visual uniqueness to these coins that elevates them way above those. A great debut, we look forward to seeing what the gold coins, and the silver coin statues look like, and to what comes in future years. For 2023, the 1964 novel Invincible, and the 1965 short story collection, Tales of Pirx the Pilot, are the chosen subjects. The mint has an excellent website up dedicated to the series.

FORMAT: 200g SILVER (REVERSE)

REVERSEANGLEVIEW

FORMAT: 200g SILVER (OBVERSE)

SPECIFICATION
DENOMINATION €10 (Malta) €20 (Malta)
COMPOSITION 0.999 silver 0.999 silver
WEIGHT 62.2 grams 200.0 grams
DIMENSIONS 45.0 mm 65.0 mm
FINISH Antique Antique
MODIFICATIONS High-relief, colour High-relief, colour
MINTAGE 2,000 100
BOX / C.O.A. Yes / Yes Yes / Yes