MICRO-MINTAGE RANGE (2025) by Pop Coins/Numiscollect With AI art seemingly taking over the internet, for good or bad, it was only a matter of time before it was employed to create designs for coins. Numiscollect, via their new Pop Coins venture, have utilised it for a novel range comprising several small series, each with a common theme. Not all are AI designed. These are not aftermarket coloured bullion coins, but full, unique coins in their own right, so kudos to Pop Coins for not taking the easy route. Each coin tips the scales at [...]

STEAMPUNK (2020-) by CIT Coin Invest What do you get if you take an early-industrial Victorian aesthetic, and mix it with a more futuristic technology? You get Steampunk. Gears, steam-power, heavy industry and innovative transport and military, are all hallmarks of Steampunk, and it's a genre that has enjoyed considerable literary success, although that hasn't translated to the silver screen as much. Steampunk is a very visual genre, and offers a fertile breeding ground for the imagination of artists, including those in the coin world. By far the greatest range of coins based around [...]

Ξ TWELVE ZODIAC SIGNS (2024-2025) by Mint of MK Regular readers here will know of Mint of MK’s extraordinary 36-coin dragon series of high-relief coins, that comprised nine designs, each in four finishes. That series was issued remarkably quickly, and it was hinted that a new range was coming during our talks with them in Berlin, and it turned out to be the Zodiac. This is a twelve-coin series of five-ounce silver coins, each of which will feature one of the Zodiac symbols. Each features a classic, high-relief design of the typical [...]

MINT. TRADING COINS (2023-) by the New Zealand Mint Called Mint Trading Coins, they basically take the age-old swapping idea from baseball and bubblegum cards, and applies it to silver coins. Each range consists of 51 coins depicting characters from a specific media franchise. So far, we had Star Wars as the first series, and Marvel Comics as the second, with DC Comics dropping as the first of 2024, and Harry Potter the second. So far, of the set of 51 coins, 50 are one-ounce silver, with one a quarter-ounce gold. The coins are sold [...]

2015+ ESOTERIC CENTRES ANTIQUED by the Perth Mint This guide is a little different to our others in that the subject isn't strictly a consistent series, but a looser collection with a similar design ethos. The two-ounce antique-finished coin has been popular since the Perth Mint issued the first in its Gods of Olympus series - Zeus - back in 2014. The following year, the mint applied the format to something new and different, with its homage to Alice in Wonderland. Each of the coins below has a similar base format, an antique finished [...]

DUTCH CASTLES DUCATS (2020-2023) by Koninklijke Nederlandse Munt We have to go back to 1586 for the birth of the Ducat coin in the Netherlands and to 1659 for its introduction in silver and today, centuries later, they’re still being produced with the same weight, composition and general design, although now for collectors. Spread around the world by the dominance of Dutch international trade, it's an icon of numismatics. The Royal Dutch Mint has long issued modern silver ducats, often in themed sets and following ‘Twelve Provinces’ comes 'Dutch Castles' These are fundamentally different [...]

NUMISMATIC ICONS (2020-) by CIT Coin Invest When coins themed around the ancient world are issued, nearly all have been modern interpretations of old myths. There's a small number that look at the achievements of the first civilisations, but most bury themselves in the rich mythological tapestry, but reimagined by 21st century eyes. In 2020, CIT tipped that idea on its head, by using that same 21st century technology to reinvigorate ancient coin designs. What we're getting with this series is fundamentally an ancients view of their own myths and legends, without several millennia [...]

ARMOURED VEHICLES (2022-2024) by the Czech Mint In 2022, the Czech Mint debuted a new four-coin series featuring one of my favourite things – tanks. This isn’t as popular a subject in numismatic circles, with military hardware seemingly less popular than ever, hardly surprising given what’s been going on around the world lately. However, the history of the first half of the 20th century has been a rich source of inspiration for coin issues, and the rise of armoured vehicles a key influence on the direction of warfare in the period. The series is issued [...]

9 DRAGONS (2024) by Mint of MK Although relatively new, producer MK have already made quite a splash with just their first two releases. The first was the size of a dinner plate, and the second actually was one, so we do expect ambitious design when we get news of a new one. We certainly got it with this new Nine Dragons range, and just in time for the Lunar Year of the Dragon in 2024. The series is called '9 Dragons' and takes a selection of Asian dragons of lore, each with a unique [...]

TAROT MAJOR ARCANA (2021-) by the New Zealand Mint For at least 600 years, a pack of cards called The Tarot, have been used to play games across parts of Europe, starting in Italy. However, starting in 18th century France, the cards captured the attention of occultists, and from there, the Tarot deck took on two distinct forms. Today, most interest in the cards is centred around their occult use in divining the future. The deck in this case is made up of 78 cards. Of those, 56 are divided up into four suits, each composed [...]