The second release from The Perth Mint’s innovative Orbit and Beyond Series celebrates Yuri Gagarin, Soviet cosmonaut and national hero, who became the first human in space and the first to orbit the Earth on 12 April 1961.

Struck by The Perth Mint, the coin comprises 1oz of 99.9% pure silver with a central core made of non-precious metal.

Coloured Reverse Design

The coin’s reverse comprises the border inscription 1961 FIRST MAN IN SPACE – YURI GAGARIN and a montage of coloured images symbolising his epic journey. Blasting-off in Vostok 1 from Baikonur in Soviet central Asia, Gagarin completed a single orbit of the Earth in 108 minutes before re-entering the atmosphere and parachuting back to the Soviet Union.

Unique ‘Orbital’ Coin Construction

Thanks to the coin’s unique construction, these design elements literally ‘orbit’ around a coloured representation of Earth. (more…)

FIRST AUSTRALIAN KOALA GOLD PROOF COIN SERIES
The Perth Mint is proud to announce an iconic new series of proof quality 99.99% pure gold coins.

Introduced in response to collector desire for an Australian gold coin series depicting the Mint’s popular koala design theme, these stunning numismatic releases are meticulously struck in proof quality.

Available in three denominations, the Australian Gold Proof Koala is the first Perth Mint series to include a 1oz ‘high relief’ coin. The spectacular release is struck on a significantly thicker blank to accommodate the greater design depth on its specially prepared die.

A mother and baby koala sitting on a tree branch are depicted on the reverse of each coin. The design, which also incorporates The Perth Mint’s ‘P’ mintmark, is struck in ‘high relief’ on the 1oz coin.

Issued as legal tender under the Australian Currency Act 1965, proof quality Australian Koala gold coins are set to delight the most fastidious collectors into the future with appealing new designs each year.

2008 GOOD FORTUNE GOLD PROOF COIN
Chinese culture is steeped in lucky symbols. This stunning coin, which portrays several symbols of fortune and wealth, also reflects the auspiciousness of the number eight in traditional beliefs.

The centre of the octagonal coin’s reverse design portrays a stylised combination of Chinese characters with the literal meaning ‘bringing money and treasures’. Other design elements portray:

- a peony, the ‘flower of riches’, in colour
- eight yuan bao, small ingots used in ancient China as money
- a string of eight lucky coins with square holes

In ancient times, the circular shape of such coins was said to represent Heaven, while their square hole symbolised Earth.

Struck by The Perth Mint from 8.88g of 99.99% pure gold in proof quality, the eight-sided coin is issued as legal tender under the authority of the Government of Tuvalu. Housed in attractive presentation packaging, the coin is limited to an extremely limited mintage of just 2,008. (more…)

By: Mark O’Byrne, Gold & Silver Investments Limited

Further to recent articles containing unfounded rumours and allegations alleging that the Perth Mint does not have physical precious metals (especially silver) to back its storage programmes or to make deliveries we have received a few phone calls and emails from concerned clientele.

Both the Perth Mint and Gold Investments strongly refute these absolutely baseless allegations.

Firstly, it is important to remember that the Perth Mint is owned by the Government of Western Australia and is run within very strict and ethical guidelines. The Perth Mint does not and would not contravene the law and act in a manner which would embarrass its government owner. Indeed because it is government owned it has to be absolutely scrupulous in adhering to strict business procedures. For every ounce of precious metal that is sold to a client, the Perth Mint must buy a corresponding ounce in the marketplace. The Perth Mint is audited rigorously by the Auditor General of Western Australia as well as by internal auditors Price Waterhouse Coopers, to ensure that this policy is maintained at all times.

The Perth Mint holds full inventory confirmations on a quarterly basis as well as the comprehensive audits. The Perth Mint Depository programs are not permitted to, and do not, run short positions under any circumstances The Perth Mint does not lease metal out to mining or exploration companies and does not undertake precious metal derivative transactions.

The Mint shares concerns about pool and unallocated accounts where it cannot be established if the operator is backing its liabilities to investors. Gold Investments would advise investors to research and question any program or facility they are investing in.

The Perth Mint Certificate Program remains one of the world’s safest and securest ways of owning gold and silver offshore. All methods of investing in precious metals have pros and cons. However we are confident that the AAA rated government Perth Mint is the safest option when it comes to third party precious metal ownership. (more…)

A follow-up to the original Historical Coin Collection (which was sold out), the second Historical Coin Collection is a celebration of Australia’s currency heritage. Individual coins to be released in 2008, include 12 releases, each with a reverse design portraying a coin or token of historic importance.

The 12 Crown-sized reproduction coins (40mm) are each struck by The Perth Mint from 1oz of 99.9% pure silver. Three of the coins are plated in 99.99% pure gold, and three are plated in copper.

The obverse of each coin, which is released as legal tender of the Cook Islands, portrays Raphael Maklouf’s portrait of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II  and includes a wooden velvet-lined presentation case along with a Replica Collection comprising actual size replicas of all 12 historical coins and tokens.

Only 1,500 of these collections will ever be released and you may purchases the complete set from the Perth Mint or sign up for a monthly subscription Plan. Check the Perth Mint web site here for full details. (more…)

Today, the historic Perth Mint reveals its new corporate identity to an international audience at the 2008 World Money Fair in Berlin, Germany.

Perth Mint Chief Executive Officer, Ed Harbuz said “revitalising The Perth Mint brand was necessary to echo expanding global business activities and to provide flexibility to adapt to the increasingly varied media in which the Mint features.”

Since its foundation day on 20 June 1899, The Perth Mint’s corporate identity has evolved from being represented by the official seal of the Royal Mint, through various interpretations, to a symbolic logo depicting a rampant swan.

“Our new corporate identity is reflective of a modern organisation. It will serve us well into the 21st century, while maintaining strong links to our long and distinguished past,” said Mr Harbuz. (more…)