It’s been a while since we did a good round-up of the New Zealand Mints coins, so here’s a long overdue catch-up on a more varied selection than they’ve had of late, encompassing some more ambitious pop-culture coins, and some outside of that genre as well. The biggest releases are for the mint’s long-running Star Wars franchise, which seemingly continues to be as popular as ever, despite the huge range of coins that have appeared over the last decade.

The mint has wandered back into non-genre themes as well, thankfully, and they’ve also issued the second in their Wild West series, as well as the latest in the smash-hit (if the secondary market values are a reliable indicator) Tarot range. All are available to order now, and if you click the banner below, we’ll get a small commission at no cost to you. Thanks.

The Death Star has appeared on so many coins from the NZ Mint that we’ve lost count of them. In 2021, there was even a fully dimensional (spherical) issue that was exclusive to German dealer, EMK, but that one weighed in at a kilo, and came with a €3k price tag, so not a mass-market item. The latest pair appears to have an identical design, but are coming in
at considerably more affordable weights, in relative terms at least.

They sport the same antique finish and these are not hollow, by the way, but solid silver. There’s a choice of 100 gram, or 300 gram variants, and you can see in the box images above, the difference in size between them. In value terms, it’s a no-brainer for us. The 100 gram variant is $349 USD, with the 300 gram version at $999. Given they have the same marketing, design, packaging, and licencing costs, and the only real difference is $160 of metal, we reckon the big one is at least $200 too expensive. It remains a neat offering, and we’re sure the legions of Star Wars fans will love it.

A rare venture away from pop-culture franchises, the mint’s ‘Wild West’ series kicked off last October with a Billy the Kid coin, which was followed up this January with Calamity Jane. This third release features a lawman, the Sheriff that shot Billy the Kid, Pat Garrett, who wrote his own book on the story, forever cementing Billy the Kid’s iconic status, as unwarranted as it was.

These one-ounce rectangular coins are done in the style of a wanted poster, with a suitably appropriate antique finish, and some bullet holes going right through the coin. They’re relatively simple in style, but very effective, and the artwork captures Garrett’s swagger really well. As always, the packaging is excellent, and this range is a good addition to a theme that seems to be quite under-represented in modern coins.

This series caught us by surprise. When it debuted in 2021, we thought it would just be another minor series about an age-old subject, but it became clear from the massive prices they were selling for on auction sites, that this one had caught the attention of collectors. We’re now 15 coins into the collection, which we believe will number 22 when complete.

Again, these are simple affairs, depicting a tarot character in part-coloured form, and with the Public Seal of Niue on the obverse. The book-like packaging is first class, and suitably themed. Previous issues have sold out, and with The Devil on the front of this release, we’d expect the same to be true here.

Not as big a franchise as Star Wars, or Marvel, of course, GI Joe has nevertheless seen quite a bit of action in the film world, and remains a popular toy to this day. These are rectangular character coins, and Scarlett is the second so far, following the January debut of Duke.

This type of coin is one the New Zealand Mint can do in its sleep, and they use it for many franchises. They seem to popular with the casual collector who appreciates the colour, and to be fair, they are well realised. If you like G.I. Joe, this will likely scratch that numismatic itch. If you don’t, there are plenty of options out there, including many in this mints range.

This is the fifth in the vessel-shaped series of Star Wars coins, and it’s the ultra-iconic X-Wing starfighter, all known as the T-65. Anyone that knows the films will know what this is, and fortunately, the depiction is spot-on from above, with plenty of detail. They’re not fully dimensional, unfortunately, with a flat edge, so a missed opportunity to make something special, but decent enough.

While the previous four coins in this range have been available in one-ounce, and three-ounce forms, the T-65 seems to be coming in the larger format only, for the present, at least. We’re not sure why, but we guess the spindly shape might be difficult to produce with a smaller amount of metal, It seems a shame one of the most iconic vessels isn’t available for the one-ounce collector. Whatever the case, this one is beautifully presented, and will no doubt find plenty of fans.