August, 2023
Lunar Dragon dimensional, gilded silver coin (2023 CIT Coin Invest)
Mik Woodgate2023-08-31T21:26:37+01:00August 31st, 2023|
Lunar Dragon dimensional, gilded silver coin (2023 CIT Coin Invest)
Probably our favourite lunar series of recent years, CIT’s fully dimensional range has great design, a quirky attitude, and superb quality. For 2024, the lunar calendar has the dragon as its figurehead, the only mythological creature of the 12, and likely the most popular, if coin sales are any indicator.
The dragon is brilliant, even including the pearl of legend. A difficult beast to reproduce in this format, it’s a testament to CIT that they have managed to do so with contemptuous ease. We’ve covered this one before, but CIT have recently added the gilded variant they’ve issued for previous years. It’s perhaps more in keeping with Asian culture, for which the dragon has special appeal.
We’ve added this one to our comprehensive profile, where you can see the whole range, including the silver coin notes, and the minigold coins as well.
World of Cryptids 08 Sasquatch silver coin (2023 Lithuanian Mint)
Mik Woodgate2023-08-31T20:49:23+01:00August 31st, 2023|
World of Cryptids 08 Sasquatch silver coin (2023 Lithuanian Mint)
Another series we have a very high regard for, the 12-coin (all to be released in 2023), ‘World of Cryptids’ series, based on the work of Lithuanian artist, Laimutė Varkalaitė, continues with its eighth release. These carry very distinctive artwork, and the artist has cast a net over the whole world for inspiration, with creatures from almost all continents.
This time around we’re with one of the more famous cryptids, the North American beast, Sasquatch. It’s a very unusual depiction, almost lion-like rather than the large, upright ape-like creature of Hollywood fame. It remains a striking piece, more than living up to the standards of this awesome series.
You can see all eight designs in our full Coin Series Profile. The next issue will be a dragon, with a Jinn, a Wendigo, and the Yeti, rounding out the series over the rest of 2023. They can be bought direct from the Lithuanian Mint HERE, or from various dealers for €119.
Big 5 Africa Cape Buffalo bullion coin (2023 South African Mint)
Mik Woodgate2023-08-31T20:20:50+01:00August 31st, 2023|
Big 5 Africa Cape Buffalo bullion coin (2023 South African Mint)
The South African Mint’s excellent ‘Big 5’ series of nature coins continues its journey through the five beasts for the second time, with the release of the last coin in Series II, and our favourite of them all, the Cape buffalo. Another fine designs, and each carries the same obverse that adorned their respective animals in series one.
There are gold and silver variants in various sizes and finishes, as well as a platinum version. Each coin, even the base one-ounce silver bullion coin, comes in themed packaging, which goes some way to explain the relatively high price of it. It remains a very high quality series, however, At the time of writing, we don’t know if there will be a third series, but you can check out the existing ten designs in our newly rewritten profile of the range.
Icons of Inspiration Thomas Edison bullion coin (2023 APMEX)
Mik Woodgate2023-08-31T18:44:41+01:00August 31st, 2023|
Icons of Inspiration Thomas Edison bullion coin (2023 APMEX)
We’ve made no secret of our love for this terrific bullion coin series, issued by US mega-dealer, APMEX. Called Icons of Inspiration, each release showcases the work of one of history’s eminent minds. What lifts this series is the artwork by coin designer Joel Iskowitz, a narrative artist that has produced around 50 works for the US Mint alone.
Thomas Edison is the 7th release to date, and joins a very impressive list of scientists in the series. As always, the scientist is depicted, along with some of their notable works. Not shown here, but in the profile, is an equally superb common obverse, which could stand as a coin in its own right.
There are two variants on offer, with a one-ounce silver and a one-ounce gold having mintages of 10,000 units, and 100 units respectively. There’s also a proof silver coin with a tiny 100 mintage as well. A quite outstanding series, be sure to check out our profile from the button below for more information on this coin and the earlier releases.
Enduring Soldiers “Warszyc” silver coin (2023 National Bank of Poland)
Mik Woodgate2023-08-31T17:27:53+01:00August 31st, 2023|
Enduring Soldiers “Warszyc” silver coin (2023 National Bank of Poland)
A long-running series at the Narodowy Bank (National Bank of Poland), its full title is The Enduring Soldiers Accursed by the Communists, and it remembers the soldiers in Poland that continued the fight against the Communists after the Second World War. Surprisingly, few have much knowledge of this period, which was mainly clouded by the celebrations of VE Day, and the dropping of the Iron Curtain, but it was a brutal and oppressive period in Poland’s history, and directly links to their current attitude to Russia.
This is the 16th issue to date (we believe of 22 in total), and tells us about Stanisław Sojczyński, nicknamed “Warszyc”. These are only half-ounce, sterling silver coins, so not too expensive. The NBP also provides so superb background information on each coin’s subject, which we’ve reproduced in full in our profile. You could spend hours reading them, and gain an understanding of why Poland is currently spending big on its military, and being a fervent supporter of Ukraine. Fascinating, and often heart-breaking stuff.
Global Heating Silver-Niobium coin (2023 Austrian Mint)
Mik Woodgate2023-08-31T16:59:40+01:00August 31st, 2023|
Global Heating Silver-Niobium coin (2023 Austrian Mint)
This is more of a test post, so bear with me. Every month or so, we usually do a round-up of all the guides that have been updated, but that often means it can be several weeks from updating to informing readers of it. Moving forward, we’ll do one of these Quicklook modals on the day of updating for each one. It lets people, maybe not overly interested enough in a deeper dive into a specific range, have a quick peek at something new, which may generate more interest. Who knows?
We’re also testing out a way of putting these together (currently, we have to use a different editor for the contents), which will make them a little better looking as well. There will be a ton of these today, as I did update a few guides on holiday.
This one is for the latest Niobium coin from the Austrian Mint’s now 20-year-old range. Called ‘Global Heating’, a not entirely accurate description of the current climate problems, it’s a terrific entrant to the series. The change in 2014 from one to two shades of niobium has really given the range the kick it needed, and the last few coins have been the best yet. We’re very impressed with this one, in particular. The guide can be found by clicking our classic button below.
Bear Trap silver coin (2024 Armageddon Mint)
Mik Woodgate2023-08-30T22:31:00+01:00August 30th, 2023|
Bear Trap silver coin (2024 Armageddon Mint)
It’s been a while since we covered new releases from the Armageddon Mint, but they’re getting busy again with some quite unusual new releases. One of them is this Bear Trap coin, issued for the Republic of Chad, and formed in an ounce of 0.999. Its shape is the first thing that stands out, and as Armageddon have been busy with their new state-of-the-art gas-exchanged, vacuum precision caster, we’re going to assume that this is the way the coin was formed.
It’s quite a US-centric design, given these abhorrent devices are banned in the EU, and the UK (although comically, in the UK, it is apparently legal to set one inside your house between 6pm and 6am to catch burglars…), and around 10 states in the US. As an exercise in numismatics, it remains an interesting piece. The coin is 41 x 47 x14 mm in size, is struck to a brilliant uncirculated finish, and has a mintage of just 500 pieces. It comes boxed with a certificate of authenticity, and should ship next month. It can be purchased from the link below.
LINKS: ARMAGEDDON MINT
Low Poly Lunar Dragon stackable silver bullion (2023 Coins Today)
Mik Woodgate2023-08-30T13:01:16+01:00August 30th, 2023|
Low Poly Lunar Dragon stackable silver bullion (2023 Coins Today)
Late last year we saw innovative bullion producer, Coins Today, release their first issue inspired by the Chinese lunar calendar. One of this very talented South Korean companies stackable silver bullion range, it realised the head of a rabbit in a quirky low-polygon form. The series is now back for a second go, and it’s the always popular dragon, the only mythological creature of the twelve in the lunar calendar.
This dragon seems to be a considerably more complex shape than the rabbit, with facets veering off in all directions. It’s an imposing piece, with more than a little inspiration from the Game of Thrones prequel, House of the Dragon, rather than a strictly Asian style. There’s a mix of finishes, partially proof and partially matt, which we’d imagine would enhance that faceted look in hand.
As always, the back face is a reverse imprint of the front, so it’s fully stackable. At two-ounces, and 47 x 67.2 mm in dimensions, it’s also a good size, and for something so unique and well-designed, quite affordable. The mintage is uncapped, so it should be easy enough to pick up. Another great addition to an extremely varied range of bullion.
July, 2023
Raven Brings the Light one-kilo silver coin (2023 Royal Canadian Mint)
Mik Woodgate2023-07-25T22:22:59+01:00July 25th, 2023|
Raven Brings the Light one-kilo silver coin (2023 Royal Canadian Mint)
The Royal Canadian Mint has a history of issuing some extremely attractive kilo-class coins, not simply bigger versions of smaller coin designs, but one-offs meant to be seen at the typically circa-100 mm diameters common to this weight class. At 102.1 mm across, the RCM’s latest chonker actually carries a design that would look equally at home on a standard-sized numismatic, but that doesn’t stop this from being a real stunner regardless.
The design by well-known Tahltan artist Alano Edzerza, is created in the style of Tahltan sculptural art tells a story from the culture of the indigenous people of called ‘How Raven Brought Light to the World2’ and as told by the mint, “In the beginning, all the light in the universe—the stars, moon and sun—was kept inside an old man’s brush house. The Raven, who had tired of flying in the dark, desired this treasure and decided to steal it. After transforming himself into a piece of dust, the trickster was swallowed by the old man’s daughter, to be born as her son. The ravenchild grew up fast, and one day, he begged his grandfather to be allowed to hold the light. Seizing it, he took off suddenly, flying up through the smoke hole and into the dark sky. He watched as light illuminated the world for the first time, sending all the animals scurrying to the places they now call home.”
It’s a really beautiful coin, in our view, striking in appearance, and effortlessly elegant. Styled to ape the look of a woodcut, the mix of gilding and various types of matte/frosted finishes, is beautifully implemented, With that giant size, this would make an amazing centrepiece for a coin display. The coin comes boxed with a Certificate of Authenticity, of course, and has a mintage capped at 450 pieces, quite high for something rocking a near $3k CAD price tag. Available now.
Star Trek Starfleet Command silver coin (2023 MDM Wholesale)
Mik Woodgate2023-07-12T20:35:35+01:00July 12th, 2023|
Star Trek Starfleet Command silver coin (2023 MDM Wholesale)
It’s turned into a day of pop-culture Quicklooks, and this time we’re at German producer MDM with their Star Trek Starfleet Command silver coin, due to ship this month. Despite a couple of recent cancellations, Star Trek is having a bit of a renaissance at the moment, with ‘Strange New World’s’ garnering very positive reviews, and rightly so, in our opinion.
With well over half a century of material to work with, it isn’t like a coin designer is short of inspiration, but picking something with broad appeal is always better than something highly specific. The thread running through all the various shows has been the organisation that helps hold it all together, and which provided the stories that we see on screen, in print, and in audio – Starfleet.
The delta logo is a pop-culture icon, so the coin won’t suffer from recognisability problems, and while it remains a simple design at heart, it remains a spot-on piece for the Trekker. The packaging is neat, but unadventurous, and this one-ounce 0.999 silver coin with its antique finish, is available to order now.
Mortal Kombat silver coin (2023 Mint of Gdańsk)
Mik Woodgate2023-07-12T16:29:58+01:00July 12th, 2023|
Mortal Kombat silver coin (2023 Mint of Gdańsk)
We’ve had a period of a few years now, where video game themed coins have garnered no small amount of popularity, so much in fact, that we felt compelled to produce one of our comprehensive Thematic Guides to the genre. The New Zealand Mint (of course!), APMEX, and LPM Group have all issued multiple designs, some excellent, but out of nowhere, the Mint of Gdańsk has joined in. I’ve said it once, I’ve said it a dozen times, I will never get my head around the whole licencing schtick.
In typical Mint of Gdańsk style, this is a rimless, high-relief, two-ounce silver coin, and although it has an antique-finish, it’s predominantly coloured on the main face with UV fluorescent ink. It certainly captures the spirit of these very cool games, although the colour choice does limit contrast, and thus the overall readability of the design. We suspect this will be reversed when the UV ink is doing its job, and the design will come to life.
The obverse is dull and very basic, unusual for this producer, but licencing does bring with it many restrictions. Just 500 will be struck, and it will come boxed with a certificate. It is good to see this kind of coin format come to this genre, which has tended towards the lower end, no doubt to satisfy the younger, and less affluent market. The angled image below suggests the coin is a very high quality production, worthy to stand alongside this producer’s other works. Available to order now, it is scheduled to ship in late September.
The Mandalorian: Grogu shaped silver coin (2023 New Zealand Mint)
Mik Woodgate2023-07-12T09:20:34+01:00July 12th, 2023|
The Mandalorian: Grogu shaped silver coin (2023 New Zealand Mint)
With Star Wars now appearing at the Royal Mint as well, it’s clear the franchise remains as popular as ever in the collectible coin market, despite its decline amongst moviegoers. It’s hardly surprising, given the Star Wars Universe has been quite active for around 45 years now, and continues to be so, especially in television.
Possibly the most popular of the current shows is The Mandalorian, and the most popular character in that is Grogu, previously known as ‘The Child’, or Baby Yoda. Never one to miss a merchandising opportunity, Grogu has appeared everywhere, and on everything, including plenty of coins. This shaped coin is pretty cool, but it’s also a variant of a design released last year, so hardly original.
This one-ounce coloured silver coin depicts Grogu in his pod, and does it with a little more detail than the 2022 original. That issue sold out quickly, so the reasoning behind the 2023 release is to give the fans another opportunity to pick up this neat design. Packaging is very well done, as always, and the coin has a mintage of 5,000 pieces. It’s available now, and can be purchased at the affiliate link below.
June, 2023
Warner Brothers 100th Anniversary silver coin (2023 Royal Dutch Mint)
Mik Woodgate2023-06-30T20:36:09+01:00June 30th, 2023|
Warner Brothers 100th Anniversary silver coin (2023 Royal Dutch Mint)
The New Zealand Mint has done a sterling job of marking the 100th anniversary of one of the giants of Hollywood – Warner Brothers. They’ve done so by concentrating on the studio’s output of iconic movies and television, from the earliest days, to the latest. They aren’t alone in celebrating, however, and surprisingly, it’s the Royal Dutch Mint doing the honours.
It starts off well, with the coin shaped like one of the early Warner Brothers shield logo’s, incorporating the famous WB inscription on it. However, the coin design seems a little too much of a corporate pat-on-the-back, rather than marking what really matters, the productions that emanated from the company. It depicts the Old Warner Brothers Studio, a movie, radio and television production facility sited on Hollywood’s Sunset Boulevard. It’s an important part of the corporation’s heritage, for sure, being the filming location of the first ‘talkie’, the 1927 hit, The Jazz Singer, but it doesn’t make for a coin design that evokes the glorious century long body of work that Warner Brothers have built.
In what is an ever-increasing presence in numismatic circles of late, this one-ounce 0.999 silver coin is issued for Malta, and carries the Mediterranean island’s attractive coat-of-arms on the obverse. We’re huge admirers of this European mint’s output, especially the superb Silver Ducats range, but we feel this is an uninspiring release, missing what celebrations of this Hollywood icon’s centenary should be about. Available now.
Looney Tunes Wile E. Coyote silver coin (2023 New Zealand Mint)
Mik Woodgate2023-06-30T17:24:55+01:00June 30th, 2023|
Looney Tunes Wile E. Coyote silver coin (2023 New Zealand Mint)
Who doesn’t love Looney Tunes? Widely considered the best classic animated universe ever produced, and in my view, leagues above Disney’s saccharin nonsense, the pantheon of characters is just completely unique. One of the favourites has got to be the brilliant Road Runner and Wile E. Coyote cartoons. Documenting the one-sided battle of wits between a hapless coyote and his potential dinner, it’s a marvel of comedy, unmatched to this day.
The ACME toting coyote often ends up face-planted into a cliff face, and the coin has chosen that comical image for its coin. To enhance the look, the silhouette of Wile E. is a cut-out right through the coin. Extra kudos from us for putting all that copyright/trademark rubbish on the obverse face out of the way. It makes the main, reverse face so much cleaner. Do this on every coin, please.
It’s an ounce of 0.999 silver, proof-finished (although it looks antiqued in the images), and with a mintage of 2,000 pieces. The packaging is perfect, the wooden crate the mint has used on other series before, now sports ACME branding. Available now.
World of Cryptids 07 Coco silver coin (2023 Lithuanian Mint)
Mik Woodgate2023-06-28T21:31:53+01:00June 28th, 2023|
World of Cryptids 07 Coco silver coin (2023 Lithuanian Mint)
World of Cryptids from the Lithuanian Mint passes its midpoint, with July bringing the seventh issue in this terrific twelve-coin series. The series uses artwork produced by a talented Lithuanian artist named Laimutė Varkalaitė, and depicts mythological creatures and being from all corners of the globe. The original art portfolio of World of Cryptids is far larger than the dozen chosen for the series, but the selection is a good representation of the whole, spread around the world as they are.
We’re in Latin America for this subject, the Coco, a mythical being often invoked by parents to instil fear and discipline in misbehaving children. It’s another super piece of art, and like all the issues to date, has its own unique pattern filling the background field. The coin is available to buy now, and the next in this one-per-month series will be a creature almost everybody knows – Sasquatch. We’ve added the Coco to our Coin Series Profile of the set, so go take a peek (from behind the curtains, perhaps) at one of the more interesting series in progress at the moment.
