Slovakia’s Pressburg Mint enters the limited-run silver bullion coin market with Equilibrium for Tokelau

The low-mintage silver bullion coin market continues to attract new entrants from the bigger mints, and from those that are dipping their toes in the market for the first time. It’s in the latter category that the Pressburg Mint belongs. Based in Bratislava in Slovakia, this mint has been striking some pretty cool rounds over the last couple of years, but this is their first excursion into legal tender bullion coins.

It’s the first in a new series to be called Equilibrium, one that will look at balance and harmony throughout human history. At first glance it looks a nice enough coin, but look a little closer and you can see it’s full of pretty cool touches on both the reverse and obverse faces. The reverse takes the classic Asian Yin-Yang symbol for its template. It depicts a tree on one side, that cleverly uses the symbols small circle for a sun, and a computer circuit-board pattern of similar shape on the other. It shows both contrast and similarity between the natural and technical world. The denomination and composition are inscribed in a border that also includes contrasting patterns for each half.

The obverse is likewise full of neat touches. The coin-within-a-coin on the back that carries the effigy of QEII, has a background filled with plants and flowers, while the main area of the coin proper is covered with circuitry. The date in modern and Roman numerals is inscribed at the bottom, with the coin title at the top. The issuers details are inscribed around the effigy.  A set of scales is featured in a small diamond-shaped, almost privy-mark like space.

It’s something different from the norm and we always like that, but this coin has clearly had some love and attention spent on its design and deserves to do well. Available only as a one ounce silver coin (slightly more actually, at 31.31 instead of 31.1 grams), it can be picked up in either bullion form with a mintage of 30,000 pieces, or with a proof-like (brilliant uncirculated) strike that has a mintage of 15,000. The latter is around 15% more expensive. Pressburg sells them directly, but they can also be bought at APMEX in the USA in both finishes. Available now.

MINTS DESCRIPTION

Harmony has been a popular topic since the philosophers of ancient Asia, who depicted its play with the yin-yang symbol. With the Equilibrium coin, we point out the need for harmony and balance (between technology and nature, civilization and environment, money and time, work and rest, AI and human intelligence etc.)

In this series we will depict symbols of balance adapted in accordance with the relevant idea.

The medallion is minted using LBMA-certified 1oz 999/1000 silver blanks, undergoing a thorough cleaning process before striking.

The Equilibrium coin is the very first silver investment coin from Bratislava, as well as the first silver coin since the times of the widely used silver toliars or dinars made in the historical Mint of Bratislava.