One of the most illustrious mints in the world, Perth Mint in Australia is well-known for its beautiful designs and excellent production quality. As the official mint for Australian government-backed bullion coins, they produce a number of long running popular series featuring the unique animal species found on the continent Down Under. These include the Kangaroo, Kookaburra, Koala along with other sets like the Australian Wildlife series.
In 2018, they have embarked on an exciting new series called The Next Generation! Keeping with the theme of iconic Australian animals, each design will feature a mother and baby interacting in a wonderful celebration of life in the wild extending across generations. The warm and engaging theme of this series as well as the impeccable execution by Perth is sure to make this one of the most popular new series to come out in 2018.
But the theme of the series of only part of the reason The Next Generation series is set up for tremendous success. Perth has reached all the way back to the Middle Ages of France and Great Britain for fresh inspiration in the series design. Each coin released will be minted in the ancient piedfort style . The word piedfort means “heavy foot” and, in the context of coinage, it refers to a coin that is double-thick. Back in the Middle Ages, rulers and nobles took a liking to double-weight coins with smaller diameters and thus the piedfort style became popular. They made impressive show pieces back then, as they still do today. Perth is reviving this format in their Next Generation series to the delight of many bullion collectors!
Each coin will be 2 oz of .9999 fine Silver using the same diameter of their other 1 oz bullion coins like kangaroos, but approximately twice as thick. The exact measurements are a diameter of 40.6mm and max thickness of 6.42mm. This results in a coin that feels and looks amazing! The coins also feature a bold reeded edge and a background of precision radial lines emanating from the center of the coin, both on the obverse and reverse. These lines not only help to make each design “pop” off the surface, they are also very hard to counterfeit and thus help ensure authenticity.
It is also important to note for buyers that each release will have a limited world-wide mintage of only 75,000 coins produced . Not only that, but the premiums on this series are going to be very reasonable compared to other “specialty” bullion series. Based on all the reasons above, we expect The Next Generation series to be extremely popular and encourage all of our customers to consider adding it to their collection. The British Queen’s Beast series has proven the popularity of 2 oz modern bullion coins and Perth is poised to build upon that with this new series, at a lower cost to buyers.
The reverse displays a full-body, left-facing profile of the mother koala climbing along a leafy Eucalyptus branch. Her face is turned, facing us, as though posing for the photo. You can hardly blame her for posing, as she is represented in such beautiful detail. Her fur is so finely engraved, it looks like you could reach out and stroke it. Her expression, framed by her large ears, is so adorable there is no resisting your urge to smile!
And then, there is the small joey clinging tightly to her back. She is old enough to have migrated from her mother’s pouch, where she hid in safety the first six months after birth. Once you move your focus to her, your smile becomes a warm sense of the wonder of life, and the beauty of maternity. The hope that is bound-up in the Next Generation is represented with both astounding detail and tenderness in this delightful scene.
The second coin in the series has been released. It features a mother/baby pairing of yet another iconic Australian creature, the crocodile, plus an updated obverse featuring a new effigy of Queen Elizabeth II.
The reverse features an extremely close-up side view of the mother crocodile’s partially submerged head. Her eyes and ears are on high alert to anything that might present danger. The surface of the water is tranquil as the mother glides along. One of her young is shown enjoying a ride upon her head, clinging tightly. If crocodile facial expressions reflect their actual feelings, this youngster is immensely enjoying the ride!
Extensive research in the wild has demonstrated that there exists a strong connection between a mother crocodile and her young. She is extremely protective of them, and actually demonstrates verbal communication. The young make a sound that the mother can hear at a considerable distance, to which she immediately responds. She can also produce a sound which calls her young to group to her side. Even so, the mortality rate is extremely high for the very young, with an estimated survival rate of only 1%.
At first it may seem somewhat awkward to consider this mother and child scene as poignant. However, the more you learn about the highly responsive connection and close interaction between the mother and her newborn and growing young, you can truly sense the wonder of life, and the beauty of maternity even among the fiercest of animals in the wild. The hope that is bound-up in the Next Generation is represented with both detail and tenderness in the scene presented.
The background is completed by the very fine, precision-engraved radial lines emanating from the coin’s center to the rim. These also serve as an anti-counterfeiting security feature.
Or, you can purchase both releases together in the Next Generation Collector Set !
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