Emporium Hamburg’s second series of Prehistoric Life bullion coins continues with one of the oceans greatest ever predators – Megalodon

The subject of Prehistoric Life, and this second series, is reason enough for it to be one of my favourite bullion coin ranges, but it’s pleasing to see that Emporium Hamburg have done such a terrific job choosing the subjects, and bringing them to life on the coins. For the uninitiated, Prehistoric Life ran from 2023 to 2023 and encompassed 12 issues, released three per year. Prehistoric Life II kicked off in 2024, and will have the same makeup.

The first 2025 coin was Carnotaurus, the horned theropod, but for this second issue, the fifth in series II to date, we’re under the sea in considerably more recent times. Otodus megalodon went extinct about 3.6 million years ago, but roamed the oceans for almost 20 million years, sitting at the top of the marine food chain. With size estimates ranging as high as 24 metres in length, and weighing as much as 60 tonnes, this was an immense predator, matched only by some predatory whales, like Livyatan, and today’s Sperm Whale.

Unfortunately, fossils are rare, because the skeleton was composed of cartilage, which does not preserve generally, and as a result, only a few vertebrae and other bones have ever been found. However, teeth are found around the world, and often preserve beautifully, like the one in the image lower down the page. Firm estimates on size, behaviour, and even classification, are highly variable as a result. Whatever the truth, this was clearly an incredible animal, and must have been a real sight to behold, for a few seconds, at least…

The coin image is superb, depicting a Megalodon about to chomp down on a baleen whale. It’s been a while since I’ve seen one of this series in hand, but I reckon this will be a good one. The same three variants, shown below, are offered, including the welcome appearance of a proof minigold. All variants are available to order now.