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Thursday 17 May 2018

720) "Wedge-Tailed Eagle Coin Series" which commenced in 2014: a)200 Dollars 2.0 Oz Gold Proof High Relief Coin; b) 100 Dollars 1.0 Oz Gold Proof High Relief coin; c) 1Dollar 1.0 Oz. Silver Proof High Relief coin: All coins minted by the Perth Mint Australia, in collaboration with John Mercanti, the US Mint's Chief Engraver:

720) "Wedge-Tailed Eagle Coin Series" which commenced in 2014: a)200 Dollars  2.0 Oz Gold Proof High Relief Coin; b) 100 Dollars 1.0 Oz Gold Proof High Relief coin; c) 1 Dollar 1.0 Oz. Silver Proof High Relief coin: All coins minted by the Perth Mint Australia, in collaboration with John Mercanti, the US Mint's Chief Engraver:

About five years ago, John Mercanti, the most prolific designer in the USA, collaborated with the Perth Mint , Australia to collaborate on a new coin Series.

This collaboration resulted in the first-ever Wedge- Tailed Eagle Gold Coin to be minted by the Perth Mint, Australia in 2014. It was also the first time that a US Mint Chief Engraver had designed a coin struck by another official world mint. The coin's High Relief Obverse and Reverse are minted on concave surfaces to ensure the optimum flow of metal is achieved by the strike of the die.

The Australian Wedge-Tailed Eagle coin is the popular competitor to US Mint's "American Silver Eagle Coin Series". The entire Wedge-Tailed Eagle Series has been a global hit since its introduction in 2014.

The Australian Wedge-Tailed Eagle is the largest bird of prey in Australia and gets its name from its prominent wedge-shaped tail. Known as "wedgies" in Australia, these birds of prey are similar in many ways to the North American Bald Eagles in appearance and symbolism. Both birds are raptors that feed on other animals and both are symbols os power and strength. "Wedgies" are presently the symbol of the Australian National Defence Forces.

The Australian Wedge-Tailed eagle has an incredible wing-span of up to 2.7 metres. Soaring to heights of almost 2,000 metres, these awe inspiring birds use the thermal air currents to fly through the sky as they look for prey.

In 2014 and 2015, the Wedge-Tailed Eagle Coin Series featured Mercanti's design of an eagle in flight, ready to land.

The next two years (2016 & 2017) displayed a perched eagle with a stoic and majestic gaze. 

Now for the 2018 coin, a new design of John's has been brought out by the Perth Mint. 

Three Eagles in one elegant design:


          The Reverse & Obverse faces of the 200 Dollars Gold Coin

For the 2018 coin design, Mercanti has used old designs submitted to the US Mint, which the US Mint had glossed over.


                         The Reverse of the 2 Oz. Gold Coin

This design by John Mercanti, features a baby eaglet being watched carefully by its mother, while the father of the family of shown swooping in, ready to come home to the nest.

On the Reverse of the 200 Dollars or 2 Oz. Gold High Relief Coin is seen a beautifully composed design of a female Wedge-Tailed Eagle with meticulously observed plumage stooping towards her off-spring with maternal concern. Her air-borne mate, with his powerful wings fully extended, shows off the distinctive wedge-shaped tail from which the species takes its name.

The peripheral inscriptions are - " AUSTRALIAN WEDGE-TAILED EAGLE. 2018. 2 Oz. .9999 GOLD". The Perth Mint mark "P" is carried on the centre right periphery.

This Eagle family design of John's waiting on the sidelines for several years, has finally found fruition in a foreign mint in the shape of an elegant Proof coin.
                  The Obverse of the 200 Dollars 2 Oz. Gold coin 


The Obverse of the 200 Dollars or 2 Oz. High Relief Gold Coin shows an effigy of Queen Elizabeth II facing right. The bust has been designed by Ian Rank-Broadley whose initials "IRB" appear below the Queen's neck.

The peripheral inscriptions are: "ELIZABETH II . AUSTRALIA. 200 DOLLARS".



The specifications of this coin are: 

 Denomination: 200 Dollars; Coin Quality: Graded, Proof; Metal Composition: .9999 fineness Gold (Au); Weight:  2 Oz ; Mintage: 250 pieces (for the 200 Dollar); Mint: Perth Mint, Australia; Year: 2018. Designer: John M. Mercanti; Coin Finish: High Relief Finish.

Remarks: Each coin comes housed in a Timber Perth Mint Presentation Packaging Case and is accompanied with a Numbered Certificate of Authenticity (COA): 


    The Timber Perth Mint Presentation Pack - Open and packed boxes



Grade: 70 Ultra Cameo (PF70UCAM) Certificate by the Numismatic Guarantee corporation (NGC). This NGC Certificate implies that the perfectly graded 200 Dollar Gold Coin will have ZERO imperfections - showing all features and fields exactly as the engraver and mint had intended.

In addition: the Proof coins are sonically sealed in an acrylic holder and bear a label hand-signed by John Mercanti.


       The Reverse & Obverse faces of the 100 Dollars Gold coin


On the Reverse of the 100 Dollars or 1 Oz. Gold High Relief Coin is seen a beautifully composed design of a female Wedge-Tailed Eagle with meticulously observed plumage, stooping towards her off-spring with maternal concern. Her air-borne mate, with his powerful wings fully extended, shows off the distinctive wedge-shaped tail from which the species takes its name.

The peripheral inscriptions are - "AUSTRALIAN WEDGE-TAILED EAGLE. 2018. 1 oZ. .9999 GOLD". The Perth Mint mark "P" is carried on the centre right periphery.

The Obverse of the 100 Dollars or 1 Oz. High Relief Gold Coin shows an effigy of Queen Elizabeth II facing right. The bust has been designed by Ian Rank-Broadley whose initials "IRB" appear below the Queen's neck.

The peripheral inscriptions are: "ELIZABETH II. AUSTRALIA. 100 DOLLARS".

The specifications of this coin are: 

Denomination: 100 Dollars; Coin Quality: Graded, Proof; Metal Composition: .9999 Gold (Au); Weight: 1 Oz.; Mintage: 500 pieces (for the 100 Dollars); Mint: Perth Mint, Australia; Year: 2018; Designer: John M. Mercanti; Coin Finish: High Relief Finish.

Remarks: Each coin comes housed in a Timber Perth Mint Presentation Packaging Case and is accompanied with a Numbered Certificate of Authenticity (COA):


The Timber Perth Mint Presentation Pack - Open and packed boxes





Grade: 70 Ultra Cameo (PF70UCAM) Certificate by the Numismatic Guaranty Corporation (NGC). This NGC Certificate implies that the perfectly graded 100 Dollars Gold Coin will have ZERO imperfections - showing all features and fields exactly as the engraver and mint had intended.

In addition: the Proof coins are sonically sealed in an acrylic holder and bear a label hand-signed by John Mercanti. 


The Reverse and Obverse faces of the 1 Dollar Silver High Relief Coin


On the Reverse of the 1 Dollar or 1 Oz. Silver High Relief Coin is seen a beautifully composed design of a female Wedge-Tailed Eagle with meticulously observed plumage stooping towards her off-spring with maternal concern. Her air-borne mate, with his powerful wings fully extended, shows off the distinctive wedge-shaped tail from which the species takes its name.

The peripheral inscriptions are - " AUSTRALIAN WEDGE TAILED EAGLE. 2018. 1 Oz. .9999 SILVER". The Perth Mint Mark "P" is carried on the centre right periphery.



The Obverse of the 1 Dollar or 1 Oz. High Relief Silver Coin shows an effigy of Queen Elizabeth II facing right. The bust has been designed by Ian Rank-Broadley whose initials "IRB" appear below the Queen's neck.

The peripheral inscriptions are: "ELIZABETH II. AUSTRALIA. 1 DOLLAR".

The specifications of this coin are:

Denomination: 1 Dollar; Coin Quality: Proof or Brilliant Uncirculated (BU); Metal Composition: .9999 fineness Silver (Ag); Dimensions: 32.6 mm; Weight: 1 Oz or 31.1 grams; Mintage: 50,000 pieces; Mint: Perth Mint, Australia; Year: 2018; Designer: John M. Mercanti; Coin Finish: High Relief Finish.













Links to posts on Australia, New Zealand and countries and Overseas Territories of the South pacific on this Blog:




2) Papua New Guinea: An uncirculated coin set brought out in 1995 commemorating the 20th Anniversary of Independence 

 3) Currency & Coinage of the Solomon Islands: Dollars and Cents

4) New Zealand: New Banknote "Seventh Series" issued under Project "Brighter Money" from 2015 onwards

5) Coinage of the French Polynesian Island of Caledonia (or Nouvelle Caledonie) the CFP Franc  

6) French Institution for issuing uniform currency/coinage for French Overseas Territories in the Pacific and the French Southern Territories of Antarctica: The Institut d'emmission d'outre Mer (IEOM)

7) Currency & Coinage of Samoa: Tala and Sene 

8) Currency of the South Pacific Island Country of Fiji 

9) Coinage of New Zealand: A commemorative coin set issued in 1979 

10) Currency and Coinage of Australia: Dollars and Cents 

11) The Australian Emblem or the Coat of Arms 

12) The story of the Australian Penny 

13) The Legend of the Mutiny on the Bounty: A Commemorative Coin Set from the Pitcairn Islands depicting relics from the Bounty issued in 2009 

14) An Australian $5 coin issued in 1996, commemorating Australia's greatest cricketing legend - Sir Donald Bradman 

15) New Series/Generation of Australian Banknotes being introduced from 01.09.2016 onwards starting from $5 issues 

16) Southern Lights: A $1 Silver holographic coin issued by the Reserve Bank of New Zealand in January 2017

17) Currency & coinage of the Kingdom of Tonga : Pa'anga & Seniti 

18) Postage Stamps & Coin: Commemorating the Centenary of the Trans-Australian Railway Line stamps issued by Australia Post & coins by Perth Mint on 04.07.2017

Links to interesting Posts on coins from Tuvalu Islands:


2 comments:

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  2. A complete guide about the American Silver Eagle coin minted by the United States Mint every year. Learn about the different versions of the coin with pictures, minting dates, mintage numbers, and more! Each year with the creation of the new designs, the demand for the coins rises. If you are looking for a collectible coin with an edge, these are perfect. To buy 2021 American Eagles right now. With the large amount of variations it is hard to choose which coin to buy.

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