The Perth Mint has now unveiled their 2018 lineup of silver, gold and platinum bullion coins featuring the usual array of kangaroos, kookaburras, koalas and lunar calendar designs.
Australia 2018 Perth Mint Silver Kangoroo 1oz Reverse
Leading the pack as usual is the silver 1oz Kangaroo, whose design remains unchanged from the previous year's issues. What is of not though is that for the first time, the Kangaroos will be joined by a 1oz platinum coin which has a slightly altered design to distinguish it from it's near identical silver brethren.
Australia 2018 Perth Mint Platinum Kangoroo 1oz Reverse
While the silver kangaroo measures 40.6 mm the platinum coin will have a maximum diameter of 32.6 mm. Both coins are set to have an unlimited mintage so it should be interesting to see how the platinum coin performs compared to the gold and silver kangaroos. What is not entirely clear at this time though is whether the platinum kangaroo is meant to entirely replace the traditional platinum platypus coin or whether it is being added to the lineup as an alternate choice.
The gold kangaroos complete the trio of precious metals, meaning that for the first time ever the Perth Mint's Kangaroo will be available in silver, gold and platinum varieties.
Australia 2018 Perth Mint Gold Kangoroo Coins
As we have come to expect, the gold offerings are a little more diversified that the traditional silver coin. Starting at the top we find a 1 kilogramme gold coin featuring the traditional design of a red kangaroo surrounded by golden sunrays, similar to the silver and now platinum coins.
Australia 2018 Perth Mint Gold Kangoroo 1oz Reverse
That is followed by four denominations all sporting a new design. The 2018 gold kangaroo coins depict two kangaroos bouncing their way across a stylised Australian landscape with a golden sunset in the background. The coins are treated to a mix of finishes to stunningly contrast the different design elements. This coin is set to be available in 1oz, 1/2oz, 1/4oz and 1/10oz varieties.
Australia 2018 Perth Mint Gold Kangoroo 1kg Reverse
While the 1 kilo and 1 oz coins have an unlimited mintage for the year, meaning that demand will determine the final mintage figure. The 1/2oz coin has a maximum mintage of 100 000 coins, the 1/4oz coin will see no more than 150 000 and the 1/10oz piece will be limited to no more than 200 000 coins. All of the 2018 kangaroo coins are set to be available to order after October 23rd, 2017.
Moving on from the kangaroos are the silver kookaburra offerings. The 2018 design features a wonderfully rendered kookaburra in full flight set against the backdrop of a night's sky with a full moon to the upper right.
Australia 2018 Perth Mint Silver Kookaburra 1kg Reverse
The kookaburra is available in a 1 kilo, 10oz and 1oz varieties. Struck from the purest .9999 Fineness silver, the 1oz coin has a maximum mintage of 500 000 coins. While the 1 kilo and 10oz offerings have no set mintage limit. The kookaburras are expected to be available from the 4th of October, 2017.
Australia 2018 Perth Mint Silver Koala 1oz Reverse
The next coin is of course the Australian Koala from the Perth Mint. The koala for 2017 is seated in a eucalyptus tree surrounded by gum leaves. The coin will be offered as a 1 kilo pure silver coin with an unlimited mintage for the year. Then there is also the more traditional 1oz coin, which is set to bear a mintage limit of 300 000 coins. The koala is set to make it's arrival on January the 8th, 2018.
As has become tradition, the Perth mint is also releasing an array of Chinese Lunar Calendar coins. As 2018 is the year of the dog. This year the gold and silver coins are set to portray different breeds for the different metals.
Australia 2018 Perth Mint Silver Year of the Dog Reverse, Chinese Lunar Calendar
The silver coins will have a German Shepherd lying with it's pup, Chinese peony flowers adorn the background of this design. When the full lineup is released the coin will be available in no less than seven denominations and sizes. From smallest to largest these are set to be 1/2oz, 1oz, 2oz, 5oz, 10oz, 1 kilo and a massive 10 kilo coin. All of these silver coins are to be struck from pure .9999 Fineness silver. There is a limited mintage of 100 coins available for the 10 kilo coin, and the 1 oz coin will have a maximum mintage of 300 000 coins. The rest of these issues have no mintage limit set to them.
Australia 2018 Perth Mint Gold Year of the Dog Reverse, Chinese Lunar Calendar
Completing the lineup are the gold 2018 Year of the Dog coins, similar to the silver offerings these are struck from pure .9999 Fineness gold. The gold coins here feature a Labrador retriever standing on rocky terrain with a stylised pine tree in the background.
The Perth Mint have decided to offer a total of eight different denominations for the gold coin. These are : 1 kilo, 10oz, 2oz, 1oz, 1/2oz, 1/4oz, 1/10oz and the smallest will be a 1/20oz gold coin. Only the 1oz gold coin has mintage limit of 30 000 coins with the rest of the coins having an unlimited mintage for the year. The Lunar Year of the Dog coins are set for a September 11th, 2017, release date.
No doubt several proof, high relief and various other premium versions of these coins will likely be announced in the coming months, but that rests in the realm of speculation for now so I'll allow it to rest there for time being.
As hinted at before there has to date also been no mention of the wedge tailed eagle coins. But these should be sufficient to keep collectors and stackers occupied for now at any rate. All of these coins will be available directly from the Perth Mint Website.
