CIT@WMF: The iconic Tiffany Art series heads to Cambodia for its penultimate release

It’s Tiffany time again and CIT have announced the latest pair in this gorgeous series of coins – sadly, the penultimate release as 2020 will see this multi-award-winning range wrap up for good. First appearing in 2004, the 2019 coin is the fifteenth design, and in our view at least, one of the very best.

Showcasing Khmer architecture, most famously known today through the quite stunning temple complex at Angkor Wat in Cambodia, this years issue is a great departure from the usual classic look and incorporates some of the organic elements that permeate the complex today, rather than as it was when it was built. The reverse face has an interior view and the obverse looks at the exterior. The signature glass window, this time in green, sits perfectly incorporated into the design – even sitting behind elements of the art on the obverse. It’s an absolutely outstanding coin, and one more three-dimensional than ever before.

Two formats on offer again. The standard 2oz coin is the backbone of the range, and the 1kg coin that debuted with the 2014 Baroque Dresden issue, and has been a part of Tiffany Art ever since, is back again. The latter is obviously the star attraction, but it’s astonishing how little is lost on the smaller coin – definitely the more impressive achievement. A huge amount of detail and superb high-relief take this series to a whole other level. Compare it with the 2004 coin to see how far CIT have come.

Both are beautifully packaged and come with the obligatory certificate of authenticity. As usual, the smaller coin has a mintage of 999 and the chunky beast just 99. They’ve managed to sell out every year, so it’s a no-brainer to state they will do so again. Both will be available to pre-order shortly, although we don’t expect them to ship for a couple of months yet. It’s still January, but I’ve a feeling this will be in the running for one of my favourites of 2019. The 1kg is sadly out of my league, but if it isn’t out of yours, go take a look. If you’d like to see more on the rest of the range, check out our Coin Series Profile. It’s an older one that we’ll fully revise later in the year, but all the older issues are there.

1KG REVERSE1KG OBVERSE
2OZ REVERSE2OZ OBVERSE

KHMER ARCHITECTURE

In Khmer architecture, the period of Angkor is the period in the history of the Khmer Empire from approximately the later half of the 8th century CE to the first half of the 15th century CE.

In any study of Angkorian architecture, the emphasis is necessarily on religious architecture, since all the remaining Angkorian buildings are religious in nature. During the period of Angkor, only temples and other religious buildings were constructed of stone. Non-religious buildings such as dwellings were constructed of perishable materials such as wood, and so have not survived.

The 12th-century temple of Angkor Wat is the masterpiece of Angkorian architecture. Constructed under the direction of the Khmer king Suryavarman II, it was to serve as the monarch’s personal mausoleum and as a temple to the Hindu god Vishnu. Based on Dravidian architecture, it was designed as a pyramid representing the structure of the universe: the highest level at the center of the temple represented Mount Meru, the home of the Hindu gods, with the five towers on the highest level representing the five peaks of the mountain. The broad moat around the complex represented the oceans that surround the world.

SPECIFICATION
DENOMINATION $10 Palau $50 Palau
COMPOSITION 0.999 silver 0.999 silver
WEIGHT 62.2 grams 1,000 grams
DIMENSIONS 50.0 mm 100.0 mm
FINISH Antique Antique
MODIFICATIONS Inset glass window Inset glass window
MINTAGE 999 99
BOX / COA Yes / Yes Yes / Yes