The Lunar: An Australian bullion coin with collector-appeal and a Chinese connection

Additional information > Investment forms for gold, silver, platinum and palladium > Lunar: animal-themed gold/silver bullion coins

Summary

Australia’s Lunar coins are bullion coins available in gold and silver.
Gold Lunar coins issued since 1996 have a very high fineness of 999.9/1000.
Silver Lunar coins have been available since 1999, although the silver content only increased from 99.9% to 99.99% in 2017.
The coins in the three Lunar series to date show one of twelve annually-alternating Chinese zodiac signs on the motif side, with a portrait of Elizabeth II on the reverse.
Lunar coins are in demand among collectors and investors worldwide because of their motifs, and are regarded as investment coins with collector-appeal.
Due to their great popularity, other countries are now minting similar coins, but these have so far failed to match the market profile of Australian Lunar coins

The Perth Mint has been producing a very popular investment coin, the Australian Kangaroo, for the bullion investment market ever since 1986. Nevertheless, they decided to expand their product range further with the Lunar, which is available both as a gold coin and as a silver coin. These two versions were created to appeal to savers and collectors alike. However, this coin’s design has only a passing association with the moon, the celestial body that gives the coin its name.

The history of the Australian Lunar

Anyone with a reasonable background knowledge of coins and bars knows that most countries prefer to issue their own coins, and that these are generally designed to celebrate and honour the natural life or culture of their own nation. However, things are a little different with coins in the Lunar series which are based on the zodiac signs of the Chinese lunar calendar. This well-known calendar has a history spanning several millennia and is traditionally represented by twelve animal icons. The cyclical movement between these zodiac signs takes place annually and coincides with the Chinese New Year, also known as the “Lunar New Year”.

The Perth Mint’s Lunar series of coins was probably designed to appeal not only to the ever-increasing proportion of Chinese nationals living in Australia, but also to Australian devotees of the Chinese lunar calendar. In fact, the entire Asian region was probably an important target group, especially China with its booming economy. No doubt the motifs also played an important role, because coins bearing animal depictions tend to sell particularly well.

The first gold Lunar coin came onto the market in 1996, and this Lunar I series then ran until 2007. The motif side of the coin featured a different animal every year in accordance with the appropriate Chinese zodiac sign for each respective year. Thanks to this coin’s great success, a Lunar II series was launched in 2008 and continued until 2019. The Perth Mint then introduced the current Lunar III series in 2020.

The first silver Lunar coin appeared a little later, in 1999, and due to a continuing strong demand, other issues then followed. However, when the Lunar II series was introduced, those responsible decided to synchronise the issue of the gold and silver coins. That is why, in 2007, in addition to the zodiac sign for this year, they also issued three more variants showing different animals to enable collectors to complete their collections. Since then, the Lunar series has run in parallel for both these precious metal coins.

Lunar: Fineness and minted denominations

Lunar gold coins

The fineness of gold Lunar coins was extremely high at 999.9/1000 when they were first issued, and has remained unchanged since then. However, there are sometimes significant differences between the individual Lunar series in terms of coin dimensions and the available denominations.

Coins from the Lunar I series in gold:

Fine weight	Diameter in mm	Thickness in mm	Face value	Minted from
1/20	14,1	1,4	5 AUD	1997
1/10	16,1	1,5	15 AUD	1997
¼	20,1	1,8	25 AUD	1996
½	25,1	2,4	50 AUD	2004
1	32,1	2,65	100 AUD	1996
2	40,6	4	200 AUD	2000
10	40,3	7,95	1000 AUD	2000
1000 g	75,30	13,9	3’000 AUD	2000
10’000 g	180,00	25	30’000 AUD	2006

With the growing popularity of the Lunar series, the number of available denominations gradually increased over time. In addition, there was an unmistakable trend towards larger coins. However, the major focus was on the one-ounce coin, which the Perth Mint produced 253,325 times between 1996 and 2007, making it the most common coin of the Lunar series. Collectors have noted there are only 16 examples of the rather expensive 10-kilogram coin. The Lunar I series is available in brilliant uncirculated and proof quality.

Gold coins from the Lunar II series:

Fine weight	Diameter in mm	Thickness in mm	Face value	Minted from
1/20	14,8	1,4	5 AUD	2008
1/10	18,6	2	15 AUD	2008
¼	22,6	1,9	25 AUD	2008
½	30,6	2,5	50 AUD	2008
1	39,34	2,1 – 2,5	100 AUD	2008
2	41,1	3,9	200 AUD	2008
10	75,6	6	1’000 AUD	2008
1000 g	100,6	9	3’000 AUD	2008
10’000 g	180,00	25	30’000 AUD	Keine Angabe

In contrast to the Lunar I issue, the Perth Mint chose to mint all denominations in its Lunar II series. The only exception was the 10-kilogram coin, minted a total of 16 times over three years. The most popular coin was the one-ounce version, with the mint producing its maximum of 30,000 coins each year, giving a total output of some 360,000 coins. In addition to the standard uncirculated version, smaller editions of some denominations are also available in a proof version.

Gold coins from the Lunar III series:

Fine weight	Diameter in mm	Thickness in mm	Face value	Minted from
1/20	14,6	1	5 AUD	2020
1/10	16,6	1,4 – 1,8	15 AUD	2020
¼	20,6	2 – 2,3	25 AUD	2020
½	25,6	2,19	50 AUD	2020
1	32,6	2,8 – 2,95	100 AUD	2020
2	41,1	3,4	200 AUD	2020
10	60,60	7,8	1’000 AUD	2020

So far, the third Lunar series is missing one- and ten-kilogram coins. However, the series runs until 2031 so the Perth Mint may possibly add more coin denominations in the next few years. In addition to the standard bullion-quality editions and some premium, proof-quality examples, the Lunar III series also features some partially coloured coins.

Lunar silver coins

During the first few years, the fineness of silver Lunar coins was 999/1000. However, the silver content dropped down to just 99.99% from 2017. And here, too, there are also some differences between each Lunar series.

Lunar I series silver coins:

Fine weight	Diameter in mm	Thickness in mm	Face value
½	32,10	3,11	0,50 AUD
1	40,6	4	1 AUD
2	50,3	4,5	2 AUD
5	60,3	7,5	8 AUD
10	75,5	8,7	10 AUD
500 g	85,5	10,3	15 AUD
1’000 g	101,00	14,60	30 AUD
10’000 g	221	33	300 AUD

The variety of available denominations is rather unusual for silver coins. However, only one- and two-ounce Lunar coins, and the one-kilogram coin, were issued every year. The one-ounce coin from the Lunar I series was particularly popular, with an output which ran to over a million minted copies. By contrast, the Perth Mint produced just 183 copies of the 10-kilogram coin.

Lunar II series silver coins:

Fine weight	Diameter in mm	Thickness in mm	Face value
½	36,10	1,97 – 2,30	0,50 AUD
1	45,10	2,60	1 AUD
2	55,10	3,42 – 3,60	2 AUD
5	65,10	5,80 – 6,14	8 AUD
10	75,5	8,7	10 AUD
500 g	100,60	7,4	15 AUD
1’000 g	101,6	14,60 – 16,80	30 AUD
10’000 g	220	33,00 – 34,81	300 AUD

The Perth Mint only minted half-kilogram silver Lunar coins until 2011. Nevertheless, the circulation of the one-ounce coin rose to 3.6 million copies, and there are also some limited special editions.

Lunar III series silver coins:

Fine weight	Diameter in mm	Thickness in mm	Face value
½	32,60	2,6	0,50 AUD
1	40,6	3,21	1 AUD
2	50,6	4,13	2 AUD
5	60,6	7,2	8 AUD
1’000 g	100,6	16,18	30 AUD
10’000 g	221	34,81	300 AUD

The Perth Mint has thus further reduced its range of available denominations. However, there are quite a large number of third-series silver Lunar coins for collectors. In addition to the classic proof version, the range also includes coloured, partially gold-plated, and gemstone-inlaid coins.

The design of Lunar coins

Gold and silver coins from the Australian Lunar series generally show the zodiac sign for the respective year of issue on the motif side and a portrait of Queen Elizabeth II on the reverse. However, there are some differences between the designs for each individual series. This does not apply to the range of animal motifs, which are naturally designed differently for each cycle and also vary between the gold and silver versions.

Lunar I series coins present the respective zodiac sign centrally on the obverse. This is surrounded at the top, or to the right, by the Chinese character for the animal, and to the left by the year of issue displayed vertically. The coin’s fineness and weight are indicated below the motif, and a decorative wreath of dots serves as a frame. The reverse shows Elizabeth II in profile – with an age-appropriate representation appearing from 1999. The reverse also mentions the monarch by name and carries information about the coin’s face value and country of issue (AUSTRALIA).

Second-series Lunar coins not only show a reference to the zodiac sign as a Chinese character on the motif side, but also include this information lower down in English script. So, the 2008 coin, for example, carries the inscription “Year of the Mouse”, and bears information about the year of minting and the weight of the coin on the reverse side.

In the Lunar III series, the zodiac animals are presented on the obverse in a somewhat more modern design which features their typical environment and includes the respective year of minting. The name of each animal depicted is given in both English and Chinese script. Unlike British investment coins, the 2024 reverse still depicts Elizabeth II rather than Charles III, her successor to the throne. Coins in the Lunar III series – with the notable exception of the 10-kilogram coin – also bear a micro-laser engraving that cannot be seen with the naked eye, which acts as a security feature.

The market profile of Lunar series coins

Given that imitation is said to be the most sincere form of flattery, it is refreshing to learn that Lunar coins are so popular that other countries are now issuing coins with a similar design. However, for various reasons, these have so far failed to achieve the market profile of their Australian counterparts. Lunar coins are not only in demand in Australia, China and other parts of Asia, but also on the broader international market. This is also the likely reason Lunar coins from series II onwards include additional lettering in English on the motif side. However, these are not among the cheapest of investment coins. The premium on their pure precious metal value exceeds that typically applied to Krugerrand coins and similar. Lunar coins for certain years are more popular because of their motifs and special significance within the Chinese calendar – making such coins even more expensive. And because the Chinese dragon, for example, is a traditional symbol of luck, coins bearing this motif are often given as gifts.

Overall, Lunar-series coins are globally popular bullion coins with considerable collector-appeal. So, alongside the higher premium on their precious metal value, certain examples provide an opportunity to command high prices when sold to eager collectors. Thanks to the various special editions and fluctuating coin dimensions, counterfeits are not always easy to recognise. That’s why we recommend anyone planning to buy Lunar coins should always approach a trustworthy dealer such as Echtgeld AG. Here, customers can also benefit from the close collaboration between the precious metal dealer Echtgeld and the storage specialist Swiss Gold Safe. Any Lunar coins purchased can then be delivered direct to a high-security warehouse at Swiss Gold Safe.

Published: November 3, 2024
Updated: November 3, 2024