June, 2023
1515 Rhinoceros by Albrecht Durer gilded silver coin (2023 World Coin Appreciation)
Mik Woodgate2023-06-07T14:01:46+01:00June 7th, 2023|
1515 Rhinoceros by Albrecht Durer gilded silver coin (2023 World Coin Appreciation)
Albrecht Dürer’s now iconic ‘Rhinoceros’ has appeared on coins a few times over the last decade, most notably with Art Mint’s excellent antiqued issue from late 2021. One of the most famous artists to come out of the Northern Renaissance, Dürer was especially noted for his woodcuts, which often make the transition to coins really well. Scottsdale Mint’s Biblical Series is a fine example.
This time, there’s less emphasis on that base nature, with the design employing high-relief to have the rhino stand proud of the background. It’s all richly gilded and looks terrific. The images aren’t great, but check out the video on our video page for a better look. We think you’ll like it, especially in combination with the portrait of the artist on the obverse side. This also employs high-relief, filling this face, and is based on a self-portrait currently residing in the Prado Museum. Only the shield emblem of Palau and some inscriptions also sit here. The serial number of the coin is engraved on its edge.
The coin comes in themed packaging, with a certificate of Authenticity identical to those used by German mint, BH Mayer. Perhaps struck by them? A great sign if that is indeed the case. A very nice addition to the portfolio of World Coin Appreciation. They’re not the easiest coins to pick up, but we do see some dealers have releases from time to time. It’s a half-ounce 0.999 silver coin, with a 28 mm diameter, and a mintage of just 333 units.
May, 2023
Women in History – Cleopatra silver coin (2023 New Zealand Mint)
Mik Woodgate2023-06-01T01:31:15+01:00May 31st, 2023|
Women in History - Cleopatra silver coin (2023 New Zealand Mint)
Continuing one of the few non-pop culture series the NZ Mint currently releases, Queen Cleopatra is the third in the ‘Women of History’ series of one-ounce silver coins. The series is casting a wide net, starting with the early 20th century Polish-French physicist, Marie Curie, then jumping back in time to feature the British warrior queen, Boudicca.
With Cleopatra, they’re obviously staying in the ancient world, and given the massive furore over Netflix’s ill advised rewriting of Egyptian history with their new show, it’s a timely release. Cleopatra is an absolute icon of antiquity, and her tragic story of intrigue and opportunism is known to all. Her depiction on the coin is a typical one, a classic beauty, possibly a bit removed from reality if coin effigies of the period are anything to go by. Acoloured image sits over a proof background, complete with her inscribed ankh.
The obverse features the national coat-of-arms of Niue, the mint having moved away from the effigy of Queen Elizabeth II for obvious reasons, but not yet having adopted one of King Charles III. The coin is nicely presented with a COA, and has a mintage of 2,000 pieces. It’s available to buy now.
Cameroon Mandrill silver and gold bullion coins (2022 Scottsdale Mint)
Mik Woodgate2023-05-30T01:03:10+01:00May 29th, 2023|
Cameroon Mandrill silver and gold bullion coins (2022 Scottsdale Mint)
Despite our desire for a little break from covering bullion coins, after a swathe of them hit us over the last ten days, they continue to come, so I guess here we are. Fortunately, it’s yet another good one, continuing what has been a golden age for limited mintage bullion going back over the last few years. One of the most prolific issuers of them has been the US producer, Scottsdale Mint, who have a wide and eclectic range of designs, covering everything from aliens and religion, to culture and, especially, nature.
Their latest is the third annual release in our of their better ranges, the Cameroon Mandrill. You’re onto an obvious winner with this colourful, imposing, and characterful primate, and they’ve done a fine job with this striking stylised depiction. It unashamedly shows us the primal, aggressive side of these intensely social animals. However, despite appearances, around 95% of their diet is plant matter, the vast bulk formed of fruit and seeds. There’s an almost Japanese manga look to the depiction, but whatever the case, we like it a lot.
There are two variants in the range. The rarest of the pair is the 32 mm diameter, one-ounce gold coin, with a proof finish. This comes boxed with a Certificate of Authenticity, and sporting a tiny mintage of 100 units. The proof-like silver coin is a typical bullion offering, with a 10,000 piece limit. Both should be available to order now, with shipping in 1-2 weeks time.
LINKS: OUR SUMMARY OF THE SCOTTSDALE MINT BULLION RANGE
World of Cryptids 06: Bunyip silver coin (2023 Lithuanian Mint)
Mik Woodgate2023-05-25T20:10:31+01:00May 25th, 2023|
World of Cryptids 06: Bunyip silver coin (2023 Lithuanian Mint)
The Lithuanian Mint’s super-cool ‘World of Cryptids’ series, complete with its esoteric art style, hits the half-way mark with the release of Bunyip. Depicting half-believed creatures across the globe, the 12 coins in the set are a subset of a considerably larger body of work of the same name, drawn by a single Lithuanian artist, Laimutė Varkalaitė.
The coins will be released one a month through this year, and this is the 6th to date. This Quicklook is more of a heads-up, as we’ve added the Bunyip to our Coin Series Profile of the set, so head on over for a look at what we consider one of the more interesting series in progress at the moment. Available to buy on the 26th June, with some dealers having it for pre-order sooner. An outstanding series, in our view.
Ghana Leopard silver and gold bullion coins (2022 Scottsdale Mint)
Mik Woodgate2023-05-24T12:19:17+01:00May 24th, 2023|
Ghana Leopard silver and gold bullion coins (2022 Scottsdale Mint)
No sooner than covering 20 new bullion coins and looking forward to a break, another one comes out. Scottsdale Mint seems to be on a mission to get up to date on 2022 issues, and the Ghana-issued ‘African Leopard’ is the next in line. Launched in 2017 in silver form, there’s been a new design every year since, all of which you can see in our monster guide to Scottsdale bullion series.
The latest is, in our opinion, one of the best yet, eschewing dramatic posing with an elegant image of this apex predator surveying its territory. There’s just enough in the background to ground the cat in its habitat, and the truncated border serves dual purpose as a stylised sky. A very appealing design, we’ve been impressed with Scottsdale Mint’s ability of late to have a large release schedule, while keeping up the quality.
The primary issue here is the one-ounce silver, with a mintage of just 10,000 pieces. It has a proof-like finish and comes encapsulated, unlike the god variant. That one is aimed squarely at the collector, coming boxed with a C.O.A., a proof finish, and a mintage of just 100 pieces. A great addition to one of the mint’s longer-running series.
LINKS: OUR SUMMARY OF THE SCOTTSDALE MINT BULLION RANGE
Treasures of World Painting – The Birth of Venus silver coin (2023 Mint of Poland)
Mik Woodgate2023-05-22T21:36:33+01:00May 22nd, 2023|
Treasures of World Painting - The Birth of Venus silver coin (2023 Mint of Poland)
More fine art today, this time in considerably more recognisable, with the release of the 18th (we think) in the Mint of Poland’s ‘Treasures of World Painting’ series. Launching in 2019 with six coins, there were three more in 2020, and four each in 2021 and 2022. The release we’re looking at here is the first in 2023, and keeps the same style of a 40 mm square coin with a raised, gilded border, inside which is a reproduction (usually cropped to fit) of a famous masterpiece. The same format and style was also used for a nine-coin series celebrating the 450th anniversary of Caravaggio. Obviously, collectors like these…
The Birth of Venus by the master Sandro Botticelli, is a path well-worn in numismatic circles, so strictly one for the collector of fine art coins, we reckon. Hard to think of much else to say, really. It’s the 18th in a series, using an image employed countless time on coins. The purist will prefer this, no doubt, but coin collectors will look elsewhere for imagination. Available to pre-order now, it comes boxed in a latex-skin ‘floating frame’, and has a mintage of 999 pieces.
LINKS: The first tranche of releases
Czechoslovak Radio Boradcasting Centenary 18g silver coin (2023 National Bank of Slovakia)
Mik Woodgate2023-05-17T16:46:35+01:00May 17th, 2023|
Czechoslovak Radio Boradcasting Centenary 18g silver coin (2023 National Bank of Slovakia)
Designed by Miroslav Schovanec, this 18 gram, 34 mm, 0.900 silver coin is issued to mark a centenary since Czechoslovak Radio started broadcasting on 18 May 1923. The Slovak Radio Building takes pride of place on the reverse, above which is a transmitter tower sending forth radio waves. Behind the waves is an outline map of Czechoslovakia. Impressively, the look of the building on the coin isn’t an exaggerated one – it really is that shape. Very cool.
The obverse has an early 20th century condenser microphone on it, with three loudspeakers as a backdrop. The pulsating radio waves are present here also, although with a different orientation. Those of us who had an old car stereo with an equaliser will recognise the audio pattern below it. Takes me back a bit. The denomination is inscribed here, in Euros, of course, as Slovakia is a full member state. It’s one of those coins that seems designed to perfectly encapsulate its subject, whether that be a well-known one or not. Available to order now, there will be 7,200 coins struck to a proof quality, and 3,100 struck to the lesser brilliant uncirculated one.
MINTS DESCRIPTION: Under its then name Radiojournal, Czechoslovak Radio (Československý rozhlas) began regular broadcasting on 18 May 1923, doing so as a private company. A turning point in the history of radio in Slovakia came on 3 August 1926, when Radiojournal launched regular broadcasting from Bratislava. The next year it opened a station in Košice, and in 1936 another one in Banská Bystrica. The creation of the wartime Slovak State in March 1939 resulted in the establishment of state-controlled radio broadcaster Slovak Radio (Slovenský rozhlas). During the Slovak National Uprising in August–October 1944, the Free Slovak Broadcasting Company (Slobodný slovenský vysielač) was operating out of Banská Bystrica.
Following the Communist takeover of Czechoslovakia in 1948, Československý rozhlas was established as a single state organisation by a law of 28 April 1948, with centralisation and censorship to the fore. The 1989 Velvet Revolution brought a restoration of freedom of speech in radio. Slovak Radio (Slovenský rozhlas) was established as a public broadcaster, and on 1 January 2011 it merged with Slovak Television (Slovenská televízia) to form Radio and Television of Slovakia (Rozhlas a televízia Slovenska).
LINKS: NATIONAL BANK OF SLOVAKIA SELLERS
EXPO 2025 Osaka Japan 1 oz silver coin (2023 Japan Mint)
Mik Woodgate2023-05-17T15:59:00+01:00May 17th, 2023|
EXPO 2025 Osaka Japan 1 oz silver coin (2023 Japan Mint)
Due to take place in Osaka, Japan over 184 days from April 13th 2025, EXPO 2025 will showcase technologies from around the world meant for the betterment of mankind, and a more harmonious balance between us, and nature. As cynics, we think it’ll be more of a token showing by the world’s biggest corporations, designed to placate opinion, while doing very little, but it would be fantastic to be wrong about that.
The Japan Mint is issuing a new one-ounce silver coin to mark the event, depicting some of the elements used to popularise it. Firstly, there’s the obligatory logo, this one being a little weirder than most, as you’d expect from the country that gave us a giant flying moth. It also forms the head of the mascot, Myaku-Myaku, described as being born from ‘the unification of cells and water’. The main image on the coin is of the location, on an artificial island in Osaka Bay. It all looks quite amazing, and will no doubt be a tremendous thing to visit.
The obverse face also employs the logo, this time in more colourful form, along with the usual denomination inscriptions. The Japan Mint often employs colour on both faces, unlike the majority of national mints, and they’re describing the application here as ‘iridescent’. It’s 40 mm in diameter, and has a mintage of 50,000 pieces. The coin represents just the first of three waves of releases for the exposition, covering five types of coin. It can be purchased from 07 August, directly from the Japan Mint, or from a few dealers around the world. We’ve noticed that Powercoin sometimes carries the occasional Japanese coin, for example.
LINKS: JAPAN MINT
Beethoven Wax Seal 2 oz silver coin (2023 Coin’s Today)
Mik Woodgate2023-05-15T17:49:17+01:00May 15th, 2023|
Beethoven Wax Seal 2 oz silver coin (2023 Coin's Today)
We’ve seen a few Beethoven coins over the last few years, most recently an impressive piece from Art Mint, but we haven’t seen one done in such a unique way as this one. Wax seals have been a part of the government machine, mostly during the age of monarchy as the ultimate power, for literally hundreds of years. Once the mark of importance, never to be broken by those it wasn’t intended for, it’s now a rare sight, used symbolically.
Putting a cameo-style portrait in the middle of silver looking like squeezed wax, sounds like an odd choice, but looks very cool, and we can see the concept having a lot more potential for wider employment, particularly for coins with a historical theme. Whatever the case, we like this one. The portrait is excellent, and the whole thing is quite unique.
This is a one-ounce silver coin, around 30-32 mm in size, and obviously with very high levels of relief. It comes boxed with a Certificate of Authenticity, the latter carrying a famous quote from the man. We don’t have the mintage at present, but will add it as soon as we can (time differences to Korea).
LINKS:
Congo Shoebill & Komodo AI Apocalypse bullion coins (2022 Scottsdale Mint)
Mik Woodgate2023-05-12T16:35:44+01:00May 12th, 2023|
Congo Shoebill & Komodo AI Apocalypse bullion coins (2022 Scottsdale Mint)
A couple of new bullion coins from Scottsdale Mint have debuted. The first of them is the second in their Shoebill Stork series issued for the Democratic Republic of Congo. This strange, prehistoric-looking bird is a great idea for a coin series, and for the 2022 coin, they’ve depicted the bird in flight, and with a more ornate border. It doesn’t get across the otherworldly look of the Shoebill like the first coin did – there’s nothing like a stare from this bird to do that – but it looks good. This one is available in a one-ounce silver format with a mintage of 20,000 pieces. It will ship later this month.
Secondly, and strangely, there’s a variant of the mint’s Komodo Dragon coin released in March. It has the same basic design, but has been what we can only describe as robotised. It’s now a cyborg Komodo Dragon, and instead of sitting in front of its natural habit, it resides over an apocalyptic city scene, and standing over a couple of human skulls. We’re not sure how one design led to the other, but it is original, and we do like things a little different here.
The same three formats that made up the original release, return again. Silver is represented in bullion (20,000 units) and antiqued (3,000) form, and there’s a gold (100) as well. All are an ounce in weight, and available to buy now. You can see them all in our huge Scottsdale Mint bullion guide at the link below.
LINKS: OUR SUMMARY OF THE SCOTTSDALE MINT BULLION RANGE
Jabba the Hutt Mega Chibi May the 4th SE 2 oz silver coin (2023 New Zealand Mint)
Mik Woodgate2023-05-04T17:48:07+01:00May 4th, 2023|
Jabba the Hutt Mega Chibi May the 4th SE 2 oz silver coin (2023 New Zealand Mint)
It’s May 4th, or Star Wars Day as fans of the franchise have dubbed (May the 4th be with you, for those unaware of its origins), so like last year, we’re getting a special Chibi coin to celebrate it. Last May 4th we got a special, two-ounce, gilded C3-PO coin, one of the rare two-ounce offerings, and up until that point, the first to have gilding in any size. That’s since changed with the 2023 issues having randomised gilded variants, of course.
Jabba the Hutt this time, a big fan favourite, despite his limited time on screen, and he’s rocking a Star Wars Day ‘tattoo’ privy mark on his arm. Not much else to say, given we’ve covered in excess of 120 of these Chibi coins over the last three years. They’re well struck and finished, and have neat packaging. This one will be no different. Available to order right now.
Also, our Chibi Coin Series Profile continues to grow, so if you want to see the 120+ issues to date, check it out.
LINKS: OUR SUPERGUIDE TO THE WHOLE RANGE
Deadly and Dangerous: Australia’s Tiger Shark (2023 Downies)
Mik Woodgate2023-05-01T16:41:33+01:00May 1st, 2023|
Deadly and Dangerous: Australia's Tiger Shark (2023 Downies)
A perennial fixture on the numismatic calendar for longer than AgAuNEWS has been alive, the Perth Mint/Downies series ‘Deadly and Dangerous’ was once one of the hottest coin ranges around. Early issues of this series, garnered significant aftermarket appreciation, with the 2006 Red-Back Spider issue becoming almost legendary. The series doesn’t attract quite as much attention in these busier times, but it remains popular enough, so here we are with the 18th release.
It’s a testament to Australia’s fauna that anything survives down there in an ecosystem filled with some of the nastiest predators on the planet. The fact we’re 18 coins in and only now showing off the second-deadliest shark on the planet is certainly telling, although we did have some relative lightweights for a few years. The design is one of the best to date, with the employment of a classic ‘shark jaw’ border a new addition that lifts it somewhat. The depiction of the shark is spot-on, and all told, a great addition to a stalwart series.
There’s a 1 oz silver coin, of course, (2,500 mintage) and also a 1 oz gold (99). Oddly, the former is issued for the usual Tuvalu, but the gold carries Niue’s emblem and denomination. Both are available to order from Downies now, and from other dealers, no doubt. To celebrate this launch, we’ve refreshed our old Coin Series Profile of Deadly & Dangerous. It looks a lot better, although a lot of the earlier images are much smaller than our favoured 1200 pixel format. We’ve reached out to Downies for better ones.
World of Cryptids: Adze silver coin (2023 Lithuanian Mint)
Mik Woodgate2023-05-01T10:24:02+01:00May 1st, 2023|
World of Cryptids: Adze silver coin (2023 Lithuanian Mint)
One of our favourite series in progress today, the Lithuanian Mint’s ‘World of Cryptids’ series has a quite unique style of art. Depicting weird and wonderful creatures from mythologies across the globe, the 12 coins in the set draw from a considerably larger body of work of the same name, all produced by a single Lithuanian artist.
The coins will be released on a monthly basis through 2023, and as we’ve just headed into May, this is the 5th so far. In keeping with the general weirdness, the latest coin, Adze, features an African vampire firefly which can transform into a human and possess people. Whoever comes up with these creations has access to some serious hallucinogenics..
Available to buy on the 29th May, although we’re sure some dealers will have it for pre-order sooner. A really appealing series, we’ve knocked up a Coin Series Profile to the range to date, which shows the current releases, and will be updated as the new coins drop.
April, 2023
Fender Stratocaster in Daphne Blue silver coin (2023 MTB/PAMP)
Mik Woodgate2023-04-19T16:53:39+01:00April 19th, 2023|
Fender Stratocaster in Daphne Blue silver coin (2023 MTB/PAMP)
The third and last of MTB/PAMP’s guitar-shaped coins celebrating the iconic Fender Stratocaster is released today, A range showcasing some of the car-inspired shades that the ‘Strat’ sported back in the day, this one is Daphne Blue, and follows Surf Green and Fiesta Red versions. Originally a colour Cadillac used in the 1950s, it was adopted by Fender in the 60s as part of its growing range.
A one-ounce 0.999 silver coin with a 6,000 mintage, and a size of 29.5 x 86.5 mm, it’s neatly packaged in a period-themed, windowed box, with the art aping the 1960s ad campaign, where musicians were pictured with their Fenders doing leisure activities, like surfing, or motorcycling. This time, it’s skydiving. Clearly a lot of effort has gone into this series with regard to the little details. Available now for around $110 USD. A cool item for the music fan.
LINKS: OUR HUGE GUIDE TO MODERN MUSIC ON COINS
Star Wars Jedi Order Crest silver bullion coin (2023 New Zealand Mint)
Mik Woodgate2023-04-17T23:33:00+01:00April 17th, 2023|
Star Wars Jedi Order Crest silver bullion coin (2023 New Zealand Mint)
A new Star Wars bullion joins the New Zealand Mint’s copious range, and for this release we’re back in their Faction Symbol series for the fourth time. This range features the symbols of the major groups in the Star Wars Universe, and follows the Mandalorian, Galactic Empire, and Rebel Alliance designs. Quite a simple series, it nevertheless evokes a strong emotion with hard-core fans, as each is strongly iconic.
This time around we have the Jedi Order Crest, representing the group that makes up the goodies, fighting the evil Empire baddies. If you don’t know that by now, you’ve been living under a rock…on the moon. Anyway, it looks on point for the fan, and will make a nice addition to the series. However, this is apparently the final coin in that series, which is a surprise, given we haven’t seen many of the other groups, like the Old Republic, the Trade Federation, or the First Order, for example. Perhaps they aren’t as popular as some of the other Star Wars bullion ranges.
As we write, there’s no sign of a gold one-ounce variant, so it’s currently just the silver, also an ounce in weight, and sporting a 25,000 mintage. We’d expect one to appear, but we have noticed the absence of gold versions with several of these NZ Mint bullion issues lately, including the last Grogu coin. Available to order now. Check out our round-up of the whole range at the link below.
LINK: AgAuNEWS guide to Star Wars Bullion