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 coins under the authority of Niue. Most of these are commemorative and collector issues dedicated to historical or general popular culture themes not related to Niue itself. Many of them are in standard bullion sizes, including a large five ounces of silver format (abbreviated as 5 oz Ag, where "Ag" comes from the Latin word for silver, Argentum). Those issued at prices much higher than their bullion value are separately listed in the Non-Circulating Legal Tender (NCLT) silver five ounces section of the site.
Unlike them, this coin is targeted at bullion investors and was initially released at a price close to the value of its precious metal content.
This coin is part of the legal tender bullion coin Truth Series by Sunshine Minting, US (called Sunshine Mint by most dealers). It is the first in the series to have a size of 5 ounces.
The company says about it: "The symbolism of the Lion was imparted unto the children of Jacob's youngest son, Judah, in the book of Genesis. Emblematic of all that is fierce, powerful, majestic, and influential, the Lion of Judah extends Lion's domain beyond the jungle and imparts these qualities unto all those in association.
The stunning reverse depicts a majestic Roaring Lion burning with fire as he announces his presence to the world. The Aleph Tav symbol תא underneath the beast’s feet reveals his Identity as the Lion of Judah: The strength of the Leader is the Sign of the Covenant. State of the art microengraving, visible under magnification with instruments such as a coin loupe, can be seen in the mane of The Roaring Lion. The engraving reads: No One Comes To The Father Except Through Me (a quote from the Bible, John 14:6)."
The coins are individually numbered from 1 to 1000 on the edge (struck sequentially and hand-engraved). |