The Twelve Olympians in the Zodiac - Hermes & Cancer. Samoa 0.20 $ 2021 Gold plated Copper/Nickel coin

Face value: 0.2 $
Issuing country: Samoa
Weight: 25 g
Diameter: 40 mm

Scorpio is the second Mars sign, and the one that most relates to Ares: while the fiery aspects of Aries might relate to him to some extent, it’s the more emotional Scorpio that resonates closer to him and his primal nature. As the later Autumn sign, Scorpio is related to Winter’s start, and thus to sunset-like conditions: as the Sun dims, so does life. Scorpio is defined by it’s loyalty bordering on possessiveness, as well as a rather strong impulsive nature but consciously made subtle or even outright hidden. Ares displays a surprising amount of loyalty to his family, even when most of Olympus doesn’t like him very much, and while numerous, his affairs are occult, unlike Zeus’ or Apollo’s. This reflects water as darkness: driven by strong impulses, but with the element of mystery and hidden nature. Due to Scorpio’s vindictiveness and hidden nature, it is often considered the most malign of the signs, just as Ares is the most distrusted of the Olympians, but neither are “evil” and while unpleasant they are necessary for the inner workings of nature. Darkness is after all important to health in it’s Melatonin friendliness, especially when it’s connected to water.

Face value: 0.2 $
Issuing country: Samoa
Weight: 25 g
Diameter: 40 mm

Hephaestus‘ correspondence with Libra is derived from his role as the smith god. By crafting fire, he made the weapons that the gods use to impose justice, down to the scales of Dike, the goddess of justice, often thought to be the woman depicted in the sign. As just, Hephaestus is a god of innovation, taming the chaos of the flames to produce items to impose civilization.

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.

Face value: 5 €
Diameter: 34 mm
Weight: 19.1 g
Metal: Brass
Mintage: 45,000

The obverse of this euro collector coin is dominated by the head of a brown bear in profile. Centrally positioned above the head is the Slovak coat of arms. The denomination and currency ‘5 EURO’ appear along the lower left edge. Inscribed along the upper edge are the name of the issuing country and the year of issuance: ‘SLOVENSKO 2023’. At the right edge is the mint mark of the Kremnica Mint (Mincovňa Kremnica), consisting of the letters ‘MK’ placed between two dies.

Reverse:
On the reverse is a depiction of a female bear and her two cubs hunting fish. Inscribed along the upper edge are the Slovak name for the brown bear ‘MEDVEĎ HNEDÝ’ and the animal’s scientific name ‘URSUS ARCTOS’. At the lower right edge are the stylised initials ‘TL’, referring to the coin’s designer Tomáš Lamač.

The brown bear is Slovakia’s largest predator. It has a stocky body, small eyes and ears, a short tail, pronounced claws, and thick fur that is 8 to 12 cm long and comes in a wide range of shades from light brown to almost black. The adult male can weigh up to 350 kg. Brown bears in Slovakia are concentrated in the central, northern and north-eastern mountain areas. The brown bear is an omnivore that prefers to live in mixed and coniferous forests. Its diet is 90% vegetable matter with the remaining 10% consisting of carrion, smaller animals, insects and, occasionally, sick or injured hooved game. Bears hibernate in dens from around early November to April. Female bears and their cubs are the first to enter the dens and the last to emerge from them. Male bears seek out females only during the mating season, usually from the end of April to the beginning of August. The cubs are born during January and February in the safety of the winter den. At birth they are blind, have short fur and weigh less than 500 g. Bears in the wild can live to be more than 30 years old.

Quality: Uncirculated
Face Value: 10 Euro
Diameter: 32 mm
Material: Copper
Total Weight: 15 g
Mintage: 130 000
Without capsule


In England the peony is sometimes referred to as the ‘rose royale’ and the Chinese word for peony means ‘the most beautiful’. Peonies have been painted by many European artists and the opulent beauty of the peony has long been a popular subject in Chinese and Japanese literature, painting and decoration. A Chinese legend has it that a capricious empress commanded all the flowers in her garden to blossom at the same time. All acquiesced apart from the peony. Annoyed by the flower’s refusal, the empress banished it to the coldest reaches of the empire, yet despite the inhospitable environment, the peony thrived. The empress, duly impressed, allowed the peony to return, declaring it the ‘queen of all flowers’.

Materiall: CuNi
Weight: 9g
Diameter: 26,9 mm
Mintage: 100 000


The German government has decided to mint a €5 collectors’ coin entitled “Red mason bee”, to be issed at 7 September 2023. It is the fourth coin issued as part of the “Wonderful world of insects” series, which will see a total of nine coins with partially coloured motifs issued over the period 2022-24. The series is intended to bring into focus – especially in light of current developments (insect extinction) – a special group of animals that make up a significant part of our natural heritage.
The €5 collectors’ coin “Red-tailed bumblebee” is made of a cupronickel alloy. It weighs 9.68 g, measures 27.25 mm in diameter and will be available both in mint condition and with a proof-like finish. The mint condition coins will be brought into circulation at their face value (€5). The collector quality coins with a proof-like finish will be higher than their face value and will be issued by the Münze Deutschland (Germany’s official sales agency for collector coins).

The coin was designed by Patrick Niesel, an artist based in Röthenbach an der Pegnitz (picture side), and Andre Witting, a Berlin-based artist (reverse).

The reverse, which will be used for all coins in the series, features an eagle, the words “BUNDESREPUBLIK DEUTSCHLAND”, the value and denomination, the year 2024, the twelve stars of Europe and the letter “J” for the State Mint of Hamburg.

Its smooth edge is engraved with the inscription: “WUNDERWELT INSEKTEN” (WONDERFUL WORLD OF INSECTS).

Face valie 0,5 AUD
Metal: copper/nickel
Weight: 15,37 g
Diameter: 31,51 mm
Mintage: unlimited