Ottawa, Ontario, October 19, 2007- The Royal Canadian Mint (RCM) today issued 10 new 2007 collector coins, including an elegantly painted 25-cent coin celebrating the 60th wedding anniversary of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II and a $15 sterling silver coin of Queen Victoria, the first of a five-coin series featuring royal effigies from Canada’s past coinage. The RCM is also introducing gift products to please fans of timeless coin designs and classic winter sports alike.

“The Royal Canadian Mint is proud to complete a very exciting 2007 with an array of collector coins and gift products which are appealing in both their quality and significance to Canadians,” said President and CEO of the Royal Canadian Mint, Ian E. Bennett. “These newest Mint products are innovative and attractive choices for the discerning gift giver.”

Here are the highlights of the Mint’s newest selection of products:

2008 VIGNETTES OF ROYALTY SERIES – $15 STERLING SILVER QUEEN VICTORIA
Another design first for the Royal Canadian Mint, this new series features royal effigies on both the obverse and the reverse of these elegant sterling silver coins. The reverse of the first of these coins features an ultra-high relief effigy of Her Majesty Queen Victoria, which appeared on the 1-, 25- and 50-cent coins which were issued in Canada from 1870 to 1901. Future issues from this five-coin series will include King Edward VII and King George V (2008), as well as King George VI and Queen Elizabeth II (2009). All these designs were approved by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II. Bearing a $15 denomination, this visually impressive, frosted effigy is set against a proof-like field. These coins were struck four times and hand polished in order to achieve their dramatic appearance. Limited to a world-wide mintage of 10,000, the first coin in this series retails for $99.95 CDN.

2007 25 CENT COIN – THE QUEEN’S 60TH WEDDING ANNIVERSARY
To celebrate the 60th wedding anniversary of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II and His Royal Highness Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, the RCM has created an oversize nickel-plated steel coin adorned by a fully painted reproduction of the British Royal Family’s Glass State Coach, which transported a young Princess Elizabeth to her wedding at Westminster Abbey. This outstanding coin is limited to a mintage of 35,000, bears a 25-cent denomination and retails for $21.95 CDN. (more…)

The Dalai Lama was on Capitol Hill to receive the Congressional Gold Medal, the highest civilian honour in the United States. The decision to present the award infuriated China’s Communist leaders, who on Wednesday said they were insulted by American “interference” in the country’s internal affairs.

Congress was honouring the Dalai Lama because of his importance as a religious figure, and in recognition of his efforts toward peace, nonviolence, human rights and religious understanding and tolerance.

The Congressional Gold Medal was designed and struck by the Mint and was presented by Bush to the Dalai Lama in the Capitol Rotunda. The U.S. Mint is now offering bronze replicas of that medal to the general public.

The front of the medal, designed by Mint sculptor-engraver Don Everhart, includes a portrait of the Dalai Lama with the Himalayas in the background. The inscriptions are “14th Dalai Lama of Tibet,” “enzin Gyatso,” which is his birth name, “Act of Congress” and “2006.”

The reverse, designed by Joseph Menna, a Mint medallic sculptor, shows a stylized lotus flower, a symbol of purity, and a quotation from the Dalai Lama: “World peace must develop from inner peace. Peace is not the absence of violence. Peace is the manifestation of human compassion.”

Three-inch bronze reproductions of the medal went on sale Wednesday at $38. The shipping and handling fee is $4.95 per order. Presentation cases are available. For information, go to www.usmint.gov or call (800) 872-6468.

Dalai Lama Bronze Medal 3” (918)

The obverse design depicts a portrait of the Dalai Lama with the Himalayan Mountains of Tibet in the background. Three inscriptions accompany the portrait: “TENZIN GYATSO” is inscribed on the upper left just above the mountains, “14TH DALAI LAMA OF TIBET” adorns the top edge, and “ACT of CONGRESS 2006” appears to the left of the Dalai Lama’s hands.

The reverse design features a stylized lotus flower, considered to be a symbol of purity. The inscriptions include quoted remarks of the 14th Dalai Lama: “WORLD PEACE MUST DEVELOP FROM INNER PEACE. PEACE IS NOT THE ABSENCE OF VIOLENCE. PEACE IS THE MANIFESTATION OF HUMAN COMPASSION.” Price $38.00

LONDON, England (CNN) — A sunken galleon, modern-day treasure hunters, a fortune in silver coins and the Spanish navy.

It sounds like the recipe for a great swashbuckling yarn, but is actually the cast and crew of a real-life struggle for millions of dollars worth of lost treasure currently being played out on the high seas.

Rather than cut-throat pirates following maps to mysterious coordinates, these days the search for undiscovered riches beneath the waves is being led by well-funded private companies.

This week a Spanish warship held an American treasure hunting vessel, the Odyssey Explorer at gunpoint, ordering it to return to port in Algeciras, Spain, where it was searched for clues as to the whereabouts of a shipwreck that has uncovered a fortune in treasure.

It was the latest episode in a battle between the salvage vessel’s owners, Odyssey Marine Exploration, and the Spanish authorities, sparked by Odyssey’s recovery of 17 tons of silver Spanish coins worth an estimated $500 million in May this year.

The Professional Numismatists Guild (PNG)  announced that it will continue its agreement with Numismatic Guaranty Corporation (NGC) as the official grading service of the PNG. This extends an agreement that was first established in 2004.

The PNG is a nonprofit organization comprised of the world’s top rare coin and paper money experts. As numismatic professionals, their primary mission is to make the hobby safe for collectors and investors by maintaining rigid standards of excellence for their member dealers. The average PNG dealer has more than 25 years of experience.

“These past few years have proven the NGC and PNG partnership to be an unbeatable formula,” said PNG Executive Director Robert Brueggeman. “NGC has confirmed their commitment to the hobby through a standard of consistent and accurate coin grading, as evidenced by the consistent “superior” rating received in the grading service survey published on the PNG Web site. This combined with PNG’s dedication to consumer protection and education has created a resource that offers enormous benefits to both the collector and dealer communities.” (more…)