Lunar Year of the Dragon 2024 France 0,25€ Brilliant Uncirculated Coin

Denomination: 5£
Alloy: cu/ni
Weight: 28.28 g
Diameter: 38,6 mm
Quality Brilliant Uncirculated
Year: 2024

A beautiful celebration of the most significant symbol in Chinese culture
The first Lunar coin to feature the official coinage portrait of His Majesty The King

In 2024, Chinese New Year, The Year of the Dragon starts on 10 February. A joyful time that is marked by communities all over the world, friends and family will gather to enjoy traditional food, watch firework displays and gift children money in red envelopes. Each year is characterised by one of 12 zodiac animals, and 2024 sees the dragon in the ascendancy. Wise and powerful, the dragon is China’s most important cultural symbol and has come to represent confidence, courage and adventurousness. People born under its zodiac sign are said to possess these traits

Country: Mongolia
Year: 2024
Face Value: 1000 Togrog
Gold: 99.99%
Weigh: 0.5 g
Size: 11 mm
Quality: Proof
Mintage: 5000

In Chinese mythology, dragons are majestic beasts that dwell in rivers, lakes, oceans and roam the skies. Originally a rain deity, the Chinese dragon is associated with heavenly beneficence and fertility.

Denomination: 0,25 €
Alloy: Cupro-nickel Nordicgold
Weight: 15,8 g
Diameter: 34 mm
Quality Brilliant Uncirculated
Year: 2023

Surrounded by plum blossom, a popular symbol in Chinese history, art, and lanterns, the rabbit’s depiction appeals to children. The inscription 'Year of the rabbit’ and the year date appear at the center of the coin. The ideogram of the rabbit appears below.

Quality: Uncirculated
Face Value: 5 Euro
Diameter: 28,5 mm
Material: Copper
Total Weight: 8,9 g
Mintage: 200 000

A coin the likes of which Austria has never seen before, Democracy is made from copper from the former roof of the Parliament building in Vienna. When you purchase the coin you therefore acquire a little piece of democracy and by spending 5 euros you get something priceless in return.

On the occasion of the reopening of the Parliament building in Vienna, we are issuing this very special coin. The copper it contains originally formed part of the former roof of the building but was removed during the ongoing renovation of the building. By using it to make the copper edition of the Democracy coin, we are making our democratic tradition something tangible. A strong democracy thrives on discourse. Our opinions may differ, but our consensus is democracy. Likewise, fundamental rights and freedoms make a democracy what it is. They enable individual and social freedom and guarantee the co-determination of the individual.

The coin’s reverse features two heads in profile and one full face, which represent the people as sovereign. To the left, we see a watchful eye surrounded by stylised laurel leaves, to the right, we see a section of the Austrian Parliament building in the background. But much more than this, the coin illustrates the spirit from which our nation was born. This is reflected in the Austrian Constitution, where it says: "Austria is a democratic republic. Its law emanates from the people." These wise words appear on the top and bottom edges of the coin.

Quality: Special Uncirculated
Face Value: 5 Euro
Diameter: 28,5 mm
Copper: 99,9%
Total Weight: 8,5 g
Mintage: 50 000
Comes without packaging

Why talk when you can dance instead? That’s how bees communicate. Their ‘waggle dance’ is a wonderful phenomenon and one that not only bees themselves benefit from. Other living creatures, including humans, do so too, because bees are a vital part of our ecosystem: their welfare is our welfare.

In the early 20th century, the unusual behaviour of honeybees piqued the curiosity of behavioural scientist Karl von Frisch (1886–1982), who grew up in Vienna. He was intrigued by the way the insects sometimes move in circles and perform a figure of-eight ‘waggle dance’. In time, von Frisch discovered that when doing so, bees are in fact ‘speaking’ a dance language to the other members of their hive to show them where they can find pollen and nectar. Although originally disputed by other scientists, von Frisch’s theory eventually earned him the Nobel Prize in 1973.

The ‘round dance’, in which bees walks in a circle, turn around, then walk the same circle in the opposite direction, tells watching bees that there are flowers with pollen in the immediate vicinity of the hive. When the food source is further away, the waggle dance tells the watching bees how far it is and in which direction they can find it. A representation of the waggle dance is shown in the background on the coin’s reverse, behind a bee in flight and above a decorative honeycomb deign. The obverse of the nine-sided coin shows the coats of arms of all the provinces of Austria. Not just for nature lovers, whether in copper or silver, Waggle Dance makes for a great spring or Easter gift.
In the early 20th century, the unusual behavior of honey bees piqued the curiosity of behavioral scientist Karl von Frisch (1886–1982), who grew up in Vienna. He was intrigued by the way the insects sometimes move in circles and perform a figure-of-eight ‘waggle dance’. In time, von Frisch discovered that when doing so, bees are in fact ‘speaking’ a dance language to the other members of their hive to show them where they can find pollen and nectar. Although originally disputed by other scientists, von Frisch’s theory eventually earned him the Nobel Prize in 1973 for achievements in comparative behavioural physiology and pioneering work in communication between insects. It is not just bees themselves that benefit from this wonderful phenomenon, as other living creatures, including humans, do so too. Honey bees, wild bees and bumble bees are a vital part of the ecosystem: their welfare is our welfare.

Face value: Samoa 0,25$
Weight: 40gr
Diameter: 40 mm
Mintage: 6666

Proof copper coin with partial gold plating

In East Asian Buddhism, the Twelve Heavenly Generals or Twelve Divine Generals are the protective deities.

Face value: 5 €
Diameter: 34 mm
Weight: 19.1 g
Metal: Brass
Mintage: 40,000

Obverse:
The obverse of the euro collector coin depicts a male European bison with trees in the background above and fallen branches in the foreground below. The Slovak coat of arms appears in the lower right of the design, just below the year of issuance ‘2024’. The name of the issuing country ‘SLOVENSKO’ is inscribed along part of the left edge. In the lower part of the design are the mint mark of the Kremnica Mint (Mincovňa Kremnica), consisting of the letters ‘MK’ placed between two dies, and the stylised letters ‘KL’, referring to the coin’s designer Karol Ličko.

Reverse:
On the reverse, a depiction of a European bison’s head dominates the centre and right of the design. Above the head are the coin’s denomination and currency, ‘5 EURO’. The Slovak name of the European bison, ‘ZUBOR HRIVNATÝ’, is inscribed along the upper-left edge, and the scientific name, ‘BISON BONASUS’, is at the lower-left edge. The two names are separated by a beech twig with leaves and nuts.

The bison is Europe’s largest land mammal, with its build resembling that of cattle. It has a relatively short, rounded head and is covered with brown hair from head to tail. The forequarters are bulkier than the hindquarters and are further accentuated by longer hair. Strong, hollow horns are a permanent feature of both sexes and grow with age. Bison are most active at dusk, and their vision has adapted accordingly. Their best-developed senses are hearing and smell. They can live to around 35 years of age. Bison are a social animal that typically live in herds of 8 to 13 animals, though older males tend to be solitary. They feed mainly on green and woody plant matter, including branches, bark and leaves. They prefer younger forest stands with dense undergrowth. In winter, their staple food sources are brambles, tree bark, shrubs and dry grass, which they dig out from under the snow. The bison’s historical range extended almost throughout Europe. In Slovakia today, approximately 70 individuals of the species live wild on a reservation in the Poloniny National Park.

Issuing Country: France
Face value: 5 €
Metal: Copper/Nickel
Diameter: 29 mm
Quality: B.U.
Mintage: 25 000

The gift of a coin to a child is a lasting and timeless gift. Each coin is engraved with the year, making it a unique and personalised gift. The coin can be kept for life, marking the start of a precious collection that could grow over the years. It's a symbolic gift that crosses generations. Whether for a birth, christening or any other special occasion, this collection is perfect for celebrating life's precious moments.

The obverse shows a fox on a walk in the forest. His gait is light and cheerful as he is on his way to celebrate the arrival of a new-born in the forest. He is holding in his paw the gift he will give to this new baby. The golden crown of this coin further enhances the happy fox on the silver insert.


The cardlet in which this coin is sold makes it an ideal little gift to mark an event in a child's life.