Australian producer, ABC Mint, isn’t a hugely well-known name in the market, but that doesn’t mean they’re new. Part of the merged ABC Bullion & Palloys Group now called Pallion, they claim to be the largest fully integrated precious metal services group in Australasia, with a presence in most facets of the gold and silver business, dating back to 1951. The point we’re making is, that this isn’t a small company dabbling with coins.

Their first legal-tender coin range is in the silver bullion market, and like most Antipodean mints, have decided the natural world is a goldmine of inspiration for it. Called ‘Untamed Landscapes’, this will be a five-coin series released between now and next August, each an ounce in weight, and each depicting a different animal from the Oceania region, starting with everyone’s favourite walking serial killer – the Saltwater Crocodile.

The series will have a common look for the most part, having a frosted border carrying the inscribed composition and series title, and a ‘sunburst’ background pattern, overlaid on which is a silhouette map of Australia, New Zealand, and Papua New Guinea, along with the stylised star pattern representing the Southern Cross. The obverse is also a common one, with a guilloche border holding the issue inscriptions, in the centre of which is an effigy of King Charles III.

The crocodile on this first issue is well done, especially given this seems to be one of the most difficult animals to depict on a coin. There’s plenty of detail, which is important on an animal with such a heavily textured skin, and the pose is very much what you would expect from a reptile at the top of the food chain, no mean feat in a country filled with less than friendly beasties of every size and shape. The small area of habitat gives the croc a solid grounding, and overall, quite an attractive design. We look forward to seeing one.

The coin can be purchased in several ways. There are individual coins sold encapsulated, or in a themed blisterpack (different for each of the five issues). You can buy them in rolls of 25, or monster boxes of 500. The coin has a hefty mintage of 175,000 pieces, so the big box offering makes sense for the intended market. There’s a nice touch for the collector, however, with a neat collector’s box, which will hold one of each of the five issues. We wish more producers offered something like this for fixed issue series.

A great debut, it’s available now. A shout-out to StoneX Bullion for help with the high-res croc images. The Saltwater Crocodile is available now, with the Kiwi launching on 01 November, the Thorny Lizard on 01 February 2025, the Kangaroo on 01 May 2025, and the Sailfish on 01 August 2025.