The legendary Monkey King follows Erlang Shen in PMC’s Chinese Mythology Gods range

Formerly Handled by SK Bullion in Singapore, the honours for distributing the Chinese Gods Mythology series have been snapped up by Precious Metal Collectors, also of the Lion City. We’re glad to see this Asian themed mythology range continue, thanks to a Thai dealer, and it’s in good hands with PMC, handlers of the Hector of Troy coin and the neat 96 Rat lunar.

The second issue in this series is a character far more familiar in the West than Erlang Shen – Sun Wukong, the Monkey King. Star of several movies and TV series that made the transition to Western audiences, mainly because this is a quirky and charismatic figure. We’ve got fond memories of the Japanese show that ran for two 26-episode seasons in the late 1970’s, which was filmed on location in Northern China, and was based on the16th century Chinese novel, Journey to the West, by Wu Cheng’en.

The coin follows the design style set in place by the first release – inspired by, but not slavishly copying the Mint of Polands look. The Monkey King is depicted with his legendary Golden-Hooped Rod and his battle cloak, both of which are gilded with varying shades of gold. He stands in front of the Mountain of Flowers and Fruits in preparation for a heavenly battle. All is brought to life on this 2oz fine silver coin with a high relief strike and antique finish.

The obverse is fairly standard however, just the usual effigy of Queen Elizabeth II by Ian Rank Broadley, which is common with issues from Niue. Sadly, no themed elements appear on this side, and we miss the neat border from the first coin that appeared on both faces. Hopefully, that will return. What has returned is the good quality black gloss coin box with the enclosed Certificate of Authenticity. Available to order now, this is a fine celebration of a much loved figure from Chinese mythology.

THE LEGEND OF THE MONKEY KING

The Monkey King, known as Sun Wukong in Chinese, is a legendary figure best known as one of the main characters in the 16th-century Chinese novel Journey to the West (西游记/西遊記) and many later stories and adaptations. The Monkey King’s origins predate the novel and can be traced back to the Song dynasty. In the novel, he is a monkey born from a stone who acquires supernatural powers through Taoist practices. After rebelling against heaven and being imprisoned under a mountain by the Buddha, he later accompanies the monk Tang Sanzang on a journey to retrieve Buddhist sutras from the West (India) where Buddha and his followers reside.

The Monkey King possesses immense strength; he is able to lift his 13,500 jīn or 7960 kg staff with ease. He is also extremely fast, able to travel 108,000 li (21,675 kilometres) in one somersault. Sun also knows the 72 Earthly transformations, which allow him to transform into various animals and objects. Sun Wukong is a skilled fighter, capable of defeating the best warriors of heaven. His hair possesses magical properties, capable of summoning clones of the Monkey King himself, and/or into various weapons, animals, and other objects. He has demonstrated partial weather manipulation abilities as well, and can freeze living creatures and even gods with his icy breath. (Wikipedia)