The Jolly Gold Giant is back for 2018. CIT debut this years black proof Laughing Buddha coin

It’s time for the annual Singapore Coin Show and like last year, Coin Invest Trust are launching a new Laughing Buddha coin, the second in the series. A showcase coin for many of CIT’s numismatic production techniques, this series employs ultra high-relief SmartMinting, a black proof finish and gilding to the relief areas. The producer is well known for its quality and integrity of design and the coins are struck by BH Mayer, one of the best in the business today.

If you loved the first issue, you’ll likely want this one as well. The design is a close match for last years with the obverse and background to the reverse face having an identical look. The difference is centred around the figure of the Laughing Buddha himself. Whereas the 2017 coin depicted a serene Buddha sitting in contemplation, this years is a more playful work – one personifying the joy of the character. Richly gilded, he stands out dramatically from the dark background.

A Palau issue, the island nations Poseidon-style shield emblem sits in the middle of the obverse. The coin is supplied in a neat gloss-black box which is a nice change from CIT’s more usual beige effort. As is becoming increasingly common with issues aimed at the Far Eastern markets, the mintage uses the lucky ‘8’ heavily, so here we’re looking at 888 coins being struck and that’s it. Price is around the €200/$200 mark if the first coin is any indicator and plenty of our sponsors like Coins Boutique, Benchmark Coins and Minted-UK still have the first issue available.No date for shipping on this one yet, but we’d imagine May/June time.