The NZ Mints flagship silver foil format, premium foils are similar in shape and not far short in size to a sheet of A4 paper. This series reproduces the iconic movie posters of all the Star Wars movies, starting with the original trilogy.

Each foil is sealed in a flexible acrylic for protection – necessary due to how astonishing thin these are – and then put into a hard acrylic frame that is an excellent method of display. They sell for $130.00 USD and weigh in at just over a troy ounce. The mint has also started a similar program for the Star Trek movies that might be of interest to sci-fi fans.

The latest series of premium foils, this one, showcases some covers from the various issues of the original Star Wars comics. Some of the artwork is now considered pretty iconic, but as a series, it will likely have smaller appeal than the movie poster range.

As before, they come in an excellent hard acrylic frame for ease of display. The NZ Mint also has a range similar to this that showcases some hugely important comics from the DC Comics range, including the debut appearances of Batman, Superman and Flash.

The 2018 debut set of six silver foils in the banknote format, these feature characters from the hit movie in full colour across a sheet of silver similar in size to a traditional banknote. Each foil is sealed in acrylic for protection, as they are only a fraction of a millimetre in thickness.

The six foils all fit into a great quality album that was supplied free with the first issue, in this case Luke Skywalker, and is not available any other way, either to purchase separately, or with other issues in the series.

A mintage of 50,000 per foil and an issue price of $39.00 USD each, means these are much cheaper than the other options here.

The 2019, second set of six silver foils in the banknote format, they’re similar to the New Hope set in featuring characters from the hit movie. Again, the album was only available with the first issue, in this case Rey, and is not available to purchase separately, or with other issues in the series.

The same high mintage and relatively affordable price marks this out as one that should prove popular and easy to obtain for the less hardcore coin collector.

Disney Season’s Greetings Christmas coins have been a regular fixture for the last few years, so the mint has decided to transfer the concept to the sci-fi franchise with a foil. Depicting Darth Vader playing a fireside piano, it’s quite a surreal piece and definitely shows a sense of humour. It comes packaged in a holder designed like a Christmas card, in which the words ‘Humbug’ and ‘Merry Sithmas’ are printed.

As one of the 5 gram foils, it’s eminently more affordable than the bigger premium format used for the movie posters, so there’s definitely appeal here for the gift market, but we can imagine many not liking it. The foil is something new, however, and on that basis is always welcome.

A switch from foil to coin this year (they also issued Harry Potter and Disney variants as well). A good-looking range.

The latest series to join the range, Star Wars Worlds, looks at some of the inventive planets that have become part of the Star Wars story over the many movies. The foils are styled to look like postcards and feature full colour images on one side. Packaged in gatefold cards, these are an inventive new addition which we look forward to seeing develop over the coming year.