Gold Ounce 2022 Icons of Inspiration - Isaac Newton, Coin from Niue - detailed information

Niue, a sovereign state in free association with New Zealand, uses two official legal tender currencies. The New Zealand Dollar is the circulation currency for daily transactions, while the government also authorises legal tender coins in the Niue Dollar currency for collector's purposes.

A number of mints issue a large variety of commemorative and collector coins under the authority of Niue. These coins are dedicated to historical or general popular culture themes not related to Niue itself. Many of them are in standard bullion sizes - such as one ounce of gold (abbreviated as 1 oz Au, where "Au" comes from the Latin word for gold, Aurum).

This coin is the third release in the Icons of Inspiration series by APMEX and features Sir Isaac Newton, famous for his important work in mathematics, physics and much more.

APMEX says about it:
This release celebrates the man whose works include the most studied and revered discoveries of humankind. Designer Joel Iskowitz perfectly depicts Newton’s most well-known discoveries featuring the prism, the floating apple and otherworldly orbs referencing his work with gravity, and his creation of the 1718 Gold Quarter Guinea.

The coin featured in the obverse design is the 1718 George I Gold Quarter Guinea, a historic coin and a great contribution to the mint by Newton: "As master of the mint, Newton was particularly concerned with the accuracy of the nation’s currency. He was determined to ensure all coins were made to the correct weight and fineness, varying as little as possible. His efforts brought the coinage, in Newton’s own words, to a much greater degree of exactness than was ever known before", according to coin designer Joel Iskowitz.

But in 1718, Newton had a problem. The global price of silver had risen considerably, resulting in vast quantities of British silver coinage being melted down for its intrinsic value. Without a lower value coin in circulation, the British economy would crumble and the Empire would be over before it had begun. Newton’s solution was simple yet brilliant. Strike a new gold coin, the first ever Quarter Guinea, to provide a useful substitute to the now scarce five-shilling Silver Crown. Newton’s genius had saved the British economy.