NEW COINS Famous ships that never sailed

 Posted by  Silver
May 242013
 

These exciting new coins, featuring ships from legend and literature, are available from today. Just 3,000 of each silver coin will be released.

Flying Dutchman

Flying_Dutchman

According to legend, the Flying Dutchman was doomed to sail the seas for eternity. Hovering above the water and wreathed in spectral light, she was a terrifying prospect that foreshadowed disaster to superstitious sailors.

So powerful was belief in the Flying Dutchman that King George V is said to have seen her while in the Royal Navy. Scientists suggest, however, that an apparent sighting was more likely a mirage that mariners mistook for the phantom ship.

After a stormy passage at sea, German composer Richard Wagner dedicated an opera to the Flying Dutchman (Der fliegende Holländer), based on the unfortunate tale of Vanderdecken. In the teeth of a howling gale, the dogged Captain swore he’d round the Cape of Good Hope even if it took him until Doomsday! (Buy now)

Pequod

Pequod

The Pequod and all but one of her crew were victims of Captain Ahab’s obsession to hunt and kill the white whale in Herman Melville’s literary classic, Moby Dick.

A nineteenth-century three-masted Nantucket whaler, the Pequod set sail on a three-year expedition bound for the Atlantic, Indian and South Pacific Oceans. A savage-looking vessel, she was decorated with the bones and teeth of sperm whales.

Ahab, who lost a leg in his previous encounter with Moby Dick, ultimately fails in his vengeful quest. During their final, ferocious battle, the whale with “the solid white buttress of his forehead smote the ship’s starboard bow”, condemning the Pequod to sink.

When Ahab launches a final harpoon towards his foe, he is entangled by its line and dragged under as Moby Dick dives beneath the waves. (Buy now)

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Never give up, advises young coin collector

 Posted by  Silver, Your Story
May 162013
 

Share_Your_StoryIt’s great to hear from a young coin collector who really knows his onions. A follower of The Perth Mint on Twitter, @Sharpy96 (aka Daniel) tells us that he’s aiming for the ultimate prize in Australian numismatics – a 1930 penny! There’s no doubting his determination to build a broad-based collection, as he reveals in this terrific reply to our invitation to Write for Us.

“When I tell my friends that I collect coins they all say one thing, what is the point in buying a coin that has a face value of $1.00. But what they refuse to understand is that there is a collectible market for them and they are not just your usual everyday coins.

After showing them some of the magic that the Royal Australian Mint and the Perth Mint has created, they have started to realize the true beauty that was behind the coins and the reason that I spend whatever money I have on enlarging my collection with one goal I’m mind – to eventually get a 1930 Penny, the crown jewel out of all Australian coins.

When I was eight years old I started to get interested in coins. My dad had a few sets including the 1991 Proof Set and the 1991 Masterpieces In Silver, and when I started to see the shininess of the proof coins I started to act like a magpie. I was attracted to the lustre, but not the true art that was pressed into the coin. As I got older I started to see that there was an art to creating such a perfect coin.

In 2009 I really got interested in collecting and that’s where my hobby really kicked off. I started saving up and buying 1oz silver proofs and a couple of uncirculated coins and now four years on I’m still enlarging my collection at the age of 16.

1996_Kookaburra

Daniel nominated this 1996 Australian Kookaburra as one of his favourite Perth Mint coins.

I also recently got introduced to professionally graded pre-decimal coins which although expensive are truly magnificent, and I recently started a collection of Florins which will take me a fair amount of time to complete. But I know that the end result will end in satisfaction and I will have a piece of history which will last me a lifetime.

As I have gotten older I have started to not only think of them as a collectible items but as pieces of history, knowing that some of my coins which have a very limited mintage may never be on the market again for me to try to collect.

And for pre-decimal coins, due to time and age damaging the precious coins that once would have been the necessary coins for a family to get food onto the table for their family, they start to become harder and harder to collect in high grades.

My number one piece of advice for young collectors would have to be don’t give up; other people may think you’re silly for buying some old coins but really you’re buying a piece of history that they will never see and will never know existed. So go out there and have a great time collecting your own unique collection.”

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The remarkable story of Australia’s first banknote

 Posted by  Historic, Silver
May 082013
 

It is exactly 100 years since the issue of Australia’s first banknote. In conjunction with Australia Post, we’re delighted to mark this momentous event with a superb commemorative set including this stunning rectangular coin.

First_banknote100th Anniversary of Australia’s First Banknote
1oz Silver Proof Coin and Stamp Set

14 Interesting Banknote Facts

  1. Up to 1910, notes issued by the private banks and the Queensland Government circulate as Australia’s paper currency.
  2. The passing of the Australian Notes Act of 1910 assigns responsibility for the issue of banknotes to the Commonwealth Treasury.
  3. Treasury invites the public to submit designs for a unique Australian currency, but entries are judged to be unsuitable.
  4. In 1912, Englishman Thomas Samuel Harrison, who has extensive experience in the field of security printing, is appointed Australia’s first banknote printer.
  5. A new printing works is established in Kings Warehouse at the western end of Flinders Street in Melbourne.
  6. The first banknote of the Commonwealth of Australia is worth 10 shillings.
  7. Included on the note are depictions of the Australian Coat of Arms and the Goulburn Weir in Victoria.
  8. A ceremony to number the first batch takes place on 1 May 1913.
  9. Judith Denman, the five year-old daughter of Governor-General Lord Thomas Denman, prints the serial number M000001 on the initial note.
  10. Prime Minister, Andrew Fisher officially presents her with the note.
  11. It is discovered in the UK in Judith Denman’s belongings in 1999, 12 years after she passes away.
  12. The note returns to Australia when a collector purchases it for around $1 million.
  13. The note sells for a second time in 2008 for $1.9 million.
  14. The note is offered for sale in May 2013 (via Coinworks), 100 years after it was issued.
Can I see Australia’s first banknote?

If you are in Melbourne between 10 and 15 May, the historic note is on display at the World Stamp Expo 2013, Royal Exhibition Building.

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ANAGRAM – Win an Forest Babies – Grey Wolf 2013 1/2oz Silver Proof Coin

 Posted by  Competition, Silver
May 072013
 

Here’s your chance to win a cute baby Grey Wolf coin, one of three irresistible Forest Babies releases.

Grey_Wolf_pack

Did you know that Grey Wolves develop close relationships and strong social bonds? They often demonstrate deep affection for the pack and may even sacrifice themselves to protect their family unit.

Struck from 1/2oz of 99.9% pure silver in proof quality, this gorgeous coin comes in a beautifully illustrated presentation card. No more than 10,000 coins will be released.

For your chance to win, use your skill to rearrange the following letters to solve the anagram.

Clue:  Beloved story of a gold digger’s trusty sled dog who becomes leader of the pack!

TheChildWolfTale

How to enter: Email your answer to anagram@perthmint.com.au. Mark your reply or subject line ‘May 2013 Anagram Competition’ and include your name, telephone and membership number, or the Twitter username you use to follow @perthmint. Entries close on 3 June 2013. Eligible entrants will be included in the free draw and the winner will be notified by telephone or email. (T&Cs)

Last month’s winner: Congratulations to Maria Lozada of New South Wales.

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ON THIS DAY Australian troops distinguish themselves at Kapyong

 Posted by  On This Day, Silver
Apr 222013
 

“Kapyong came to be the most significant
and important battle for Australian troops in Korea”
– Australian War Memorial.

On the night of 22 April 1951, Chinese forces launched a major offensive against United Nations forces defending the South Korean capital, Seoul. In the ensuing fighting in the Kapyong Valley, a key route into the city, Australian troops helped hold up the Chinese 60th Division. For their contribution to this action, 3 RAR was awarded a United States Presidential Distinguished Unit Citation.

Kapyong_Coin-case[www.anzacday.org.au says:] “The ANZAC spirit was alive and well; the 3rd Battalion had remained true to the legend. When others had retreated before an imposing enemy, the Australians stood their ground and defended their position. In doing so, they prevented a massive breakthrough from occurring that would certainly have seen the enemy recapture Seoul and with it, thousands of UN troops.”

Coin collectors can mark this famous battle of the Korean War with The Perth Mint’s Kapyong 2012 1oz Silver Proof Coin.

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