A pioneer in numismatic excellence, the Royal Canadian Mint has achieved the unthinkable - crafting to absolute perfection the world's first 10 kilogram .99999 pure gold coin!

Proudly Canadian, this captivating design features the late Bill Reid's masterpiece; 'The Spirit of Haida Gwai', across its mammoth 180mm diameter reverse. A prestigious legal tender issue and a fine tribute to artistic expression, the 2011 $100 000 Spirit of Haida Gwauu is the highest denomination 10 kilo coin. With just 15 coins crafted for collectors of fine art and numismatic innovation, each coin is hand polished from the purest gold in the world.

A testament to Canadian workmanship for further information on this coin or other Canadian issues, please contact our VIP Client Liaisons Toll free on 1300 789 VIP (847) or email vip@downies.com

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2n8Eh68cfHo

Undeniably a captivating series, the Gothic Cathedrals collection has been awarded second prize in the Fifth International Commemorative Coins Contest - the 2011 Coin Constellation.

Held September 28 2011 in the Marble palace of St Petersburg, Russia, more than 200 coins from 25 countries lined up to be judged on concept, artistic solution, original technology, design and series development.

Renowned for its unique oval shape and the spectacular obverse and reverse designs, the Niue $1 Gothic Cathedrals Cologne Cathedral Silver Prooftruly lives up to its winning title. Combining state-of-the-art minting capabilities with the innovative inclusion of a genuine stained glass window – this captivating issue recreates the beauty of one of the world’s favourite landmarks.

With what’s left of the 5,000 coin mintage sure to be snapped up by eager collectors and investors alike, head on over to Downies.com to secure 2011’s Series of the Year!

Power, Ambition and Death – 1553

The final time that the Kingdom of England experienced three changes in power within the one year, 1553 saw the passing of Edward VI which lead to a series of events that ultimately lead to death, betrayal and once again the shifting of power throughout the monarchy.

Initiated by the passing of King Edward VI, England’s throne was handed down to Lady Jane Grey, a cousin of Mary. In a bid to continue Protestantism throughout the nation, in his final days King Edward VI questioned Mary’s right to the throne, passing it instead to her cousin. Despite the obvious public support for Mary to take the throne, Lady Jane ruled England for nine days, however was over thrown by Mary, who once in power commanded the execution of Lady Jane to ensure that her power remained.

Queen Mary I immediately worked to restore the Roman Catholic faith back to England. With her efforts seeing the restoration of old English law enforcing heresy against the church, Queen Mary I became known as ‘Bloody Mary’ whereby she oversaw the burning of 300 people at the stake for following beliefs contrary to the Roman Catholic faith.

Queen Mary I reigned England for five years, however suffered from an early death in 1558.

In celebration of the 75^th anniversary of the Three Kings of 1936 – England’s latest occurrence of welcoming three separate Kings to the throne within one iconic year comes the Niue 2011 $5 Three Kings of 1936 Silver Proof. Available for purchase from www.downies.com, this eye-catching commemorative retails for $199.00.

Murder for Power – King Edward IV, King Edward V and King Richard III

1483 saw the third occurrence within the British Monarchy where three kings – Edward IV, Edward V and Richard III, ruled the throne within the one year. Beginning with his second reign in 1471, King Edward IV controlled the British throne until his death in 1483. Upon his death, King Edward IV left the throne to his eldest son Prince Edward. Ascending to the throne at just 13 years old, King Edward V was aided by his uncle Richard Duke of Gloucester as he was too young to rule the monarchy alone. Ruling for just two months, King Edward V was transferred to the Tower of London to await his coronation, along with his younger brother Prince Richard.

Days before Edward’s awaited coronation, both little princes were declared illegitimate as King Edward IV’s marriage to their mother, Elizabeth Woodville, became invalid - thus enabling the third in line for the throne, King Edward IV’s brother Richard to be crowned King Richard III. Within a month into King Richard III’s ruling, King Edward IV’s two sons mysteriously disappeared from the Tower of London – never to be seen again.

In 1674 the bodies of two children were discovered within one of the towers. Unable to identify who these two children were, the bodies were transferred and reburied at Westminster Abbey.

Celebrating the iconic year of 1936 – The final time that the British Monarchy experienced three different rulers within the one calendar year, the Niue 2011 Three Kings of 1936 Silver Proof is available for purchase at www.downies.com.

History Repeats – 1216

Following in a similar direction to the Kings of 1066, in 1216 the English Monarchy once again saw three Kings take the throne. Welcoming King John, Louis VIII and Henry III, 1216 was a year of invasion, decease and reclamation of the monarchy.

Crowned in 1199, John, son of King Henry II and Eleanor of Aquitaine was handed the throne upon the passing of his brother King Richard the Lionheart. Upon ruling successfully for 17 years, King John’s reign was challenged when Louis VIII, son of the King of France, invaded England in 1216. Receiving support and acceptance from the public as England’s new King, Louis VIII began to conquer half of the kingdom - however he was yet to be crowned. Upon the Death of King John in October 1216, Louis VIII’s supporters turned against him, welcoming instead King John’s nine year old son Henry III as the new King of England.

In celebration of the 75^th anniversary of the Three Kings of 1936 – England’s latest occurrence of welcoming three separate Kings to the throne within one iconic year comes the . Available for purchase from www.downies.com, this eye-catching commemorative retails for $199.00.

Following in the footsteps of the $1 Ned Kelly Silver Proof Collection that we blogged about earlier this year, we now present to you a similar release. Again celebrating the legendary Ned Kelly, The Perth Mint have released a new 1/4oz Gold Proof coin. Utterly magnificent in design and presentation, and with a mintage restricted to a mere 1,000, it’s set to be as popular, if not more, as the silver proof collection.
Read on for full details and a brief rundown on the history of Ned Kelly!

The history…

In 2010, we mark the 130th Anniversary of the death of Ned Kelly. Although opinion will always be divided – to some a working class hero, to others a criminal – no one has captured the public imagination quite like Australia’s most notorious bushranger. Involved in cattle rustling in the 1870s, Ned’s transition from minor criminal to fully-fl edged bushranger was triggered when he and brother Dan were accused of the attempted murder of a trooper in 1878. With a price on their heads, Ned and Dan took to the bush, where Joe Byrne and Steve Hart soon joined them.

The reward for each Kelly Gang member was raised to £1,000 after the outlaws confronted a search party at Stringybark Creek, shooting Sergeant Kennedy and Constables Lonigan and Scanlon dead. That reward rose to an incredible £2,000 per man following the bank robberies in Euroa, Victoria and Jerilderie, NSW. The gang then disappeared from view for over a year, until June 1880. Killing former friend Aaron Sherritt in revenge for a perceived betrayal, the gang set out for Glenrowan, taking 70 people hostage in the hotel. It would be here that the Kellys’ last stand was to take place, and where the gang’s famous suits of armour would make their one-and-only appearance in battle.

With Joe Byrne killed by police, and Steve Hart and Dan Kelly committing suicide, Ned was the sole survivor of gun battle, and was sent to Melbourne to stand trial. Sentenced to death the murder of Lonigan at Stringybark Creek, and with pleas to have the sentence commuted ignored, Ned was led to the gallows at Melbourne Gaol on 11 November 1880 – exactly 130 years ago.

The coin…

The ultimate tribute to Australia’s world famous bushranger, this flawless new legal tender $25 coin unites the latest in minting technology with the beauty, purity and luxury of the world’s favourite precious metal. As exclusive as it is eye-catching, the Ned Kelly $25 1/4oz Gold Proof is destined to be one of the ‘Coins of 2010’.

A unique blend of history, quality and innovation, the Ned Kelly $25 1/4oz Gold Proof represents a glowing tribute to the expertise of the precious metal specialists at the Perth Mint. Demonstrating the Mint’s mastery of full-colour technology, the 22.6mm flan of this unique legal tender type is graced with a superb design. Contrasting against the pure, lustrous .9999 gold, the striking portrayal of Ned is complemented perfectly by a design of the helmet from the armour suit Ned wore at the final showdown at Glenrowan.

With the Mint striking just 1,000 examples for worldwide distribution, it will be a race against time to own one. Certain to be pursued by gold collectors, as well as those seeking a prestigious tribute to Ned in the 130th anniversary year of his death, the only question is when – not if – this Australian-made Gold Proof will sell out.

Don’t miss this initial opportunity – guarantee supply at Official Issue Price!

A prestigious commemoration of Australia’s legendary outlaw, each of these stunning coins is...

• taken from a tiny worldwide mintage of just 1,000
• crafted to faultless Proof quality from 1/4oz of .9999 fi ne gold
• struck by the Perth Mint as an official Tuvalu legal tender issue
• beautifully presented within an attractive timber case
• accompanied by an individually numbered Certificate of Authenticity
• excellent value-for-money at Official Issue Price. Act now!

For more information or to purchase online, please click on the appropriate link:
Australia
North America

For further information about the Ned Kelly $1 Silver Proof Collection you can view our previous blog post HERE

This month saw the release of the Royal Australian Mint’s annual Year Sets. As always, the inclusion of some exclusive coins has sparked the interest of collectors, not only in Australia, but also from around the globe. Following on from previous years, the RAM has kept up with appearances by releasing the 2010 versions of the ever popular Proof and Year sets, along with the extremely cute Baby Year Set (in both Proof and Mint quality), and the exquisite Wedding Set. However, it was more so the new 2010 Commemorative 2-Coin sets that attracted the attention of most!
Honouring one of Australia’s most famous missions of exploration, these new 2-coin sets commemorate the Burke & Wills Expedition of 1860.

The History…

Gold was discovered in Victoria in 1851 and the subsequent gold-rush led to a huge influx of migrants, as a result Melbourne was slowly populated with gold seekers which rapidly led to the growth of schools, churches, libraries and learned societies. This large influx of European settlers spurred an interest in inland exploration and in 1854 The Philosophical Institute of Victoria was founded. Naturally many of the European settlers at the time were intrigued as to how expansive Australia really was and with the forming of the Exploration Committee by the Philosophical Institute in 1857, the catalyst to map out and explore Australia was too strong to resist. As a natural progression, Burke and Wills were later chosen to lead the ‘Victorian Exploring Expedition’ and then in 1860 they led an expedition of 19 men to cross Australia from Melbourne in the south to the Gulf of Carpentaria in the north, a distance of around 3,250 kilometers. At the time of their expedition most of the inland of Australia had not been explored by non-indigenous people and as a result was completely unknown to European settlers.

The expedition set off from Royal Park, Melbourne at about 4pm on 20th August 1860. The 19 men of the expedition included five Englishmen, six Irishmen, four Indian sepoys, three Germans and an American. They took twenty-three horses, six wagons and twenty-six camels. They had enough food to last them two years and ample amount of equipment fit for the expedition, however supplies were later left behind to lighten their load in the hopes they could increase their progress. Later in the expedition several men including second in charge George James Landells and the expedition’s surgeon, had all resigned. What was left of the expedition reached Menindee on October 12th, having taken two months to travel 750kms from Melbourne – the regular mail coach did the journey in little more than a week. By this time two of the expeditions five officers had resigned, thirteen members of the expedition had been fired and eight new men had been hired. Shortly after, Burke decided to split the group was he was concerned a rival explorer would beat him to the north coast and rob him of his title, and reward money which was offered by the South Australian Government.

They halved expedition continued their journey to the Gulf of Carpentaria after deciding not to wait for the hotter weather to pass. The south-north leg of the journey was successfully completed; however they were sadly stopped by swampland just 5 kilometers from the northern coastline. On their way north the weather had been hot and dry, but on the way back the wet season broke and the tropical monsoonal rains began. This is where things began to take a turn for the worse, with a camel having to be abandoned and three other camels having to be shot and eaten, with their only horse later shot. Equipment was abandoned at a number of locations as the number of pack animals was reduced.

To extend their food supply they ate from the bush, with Burke and some of the others immediately coming down with dysentery. Charles Gray was the first to die on April 17th. The expedition later made it back to Coopers Creek where Burke, Wills and King continued on to make an attempt back to Melbourne. Their remaining camels later died and without pack animals Burke, Wills and King were unable to carry enough water to make it across the Desert to Mt Hopeless. As a result the three men were forced to return to Coopers Creek to wait for rescue from a search party. The three men lived on bush tucker and food given to them by local aboriginals. Towards the end of June 1961 Burke and King decided to return upstream to see if a rescue party had arrived. Wills became too weak to continue and was left behind as his own insistence. Burke and King continued upstream for another two days until Burke became too weak to continue – the next morning he died. King stayed with his body for two days and then returned downstream where he found that Wills had also died. King was later found by a search party, in pitiful condition, living with the Yandruwandha. He survived the trip back to Melbourne and died eleven years later aged 33 having never recovered his health.

The Coins…

Available in Proof quality, these sparkling new sets from the RAM represent a fitting tribute to the 150th anniversary of the incredible achievements and great determination of the men who undertook this journey into the unknown. Sure to be hotly pursued by non-collectors, with Burke & Wills among Australia’s foremost ‘household names’, these sets are crucial to decimal collectors. The only way you can obtain the 20c and $1 Burke & Wills commemorative coins, with neither being issued for circulation and neither found in the 2010 Proof and Mint Sets, these new 2-coin presentations are essential to anyone keen to maintain a complete decimal collection.

• Official tributes to Burke & Wills Expedition 150th anniversary
• Available in both superb Proof quality
• Includes the one-year-only 2010 20c and $1 commemoratives!
• Housed in official, informative, attractive presentation packs
• Offered at the same affordable Official Issue Price as last year!

For more information or to purchase online, please click on the appropriate link:

2010 Burke and Wills 2-Coin Proof Set
Australia
North America

2010 Burke and Wills 2-Coin Unc Set
Australia
North America