Silver Five Ounces 2021 Universal Goddess - Vesna, 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, bullion 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 - including this very large five ounces of silver format (abbreviated as 5 oz Ag, where "Ag" comes from the Latin word for silver, Argentum).

This silver coin is part of the Universal Goddess series by the Czech Mint, and features Vesna.

The Mint says about it:
In many pagan pantheons there are the so-called triple goddesses that symbolise the cycle of nature and all life. The ancient Slavs also worshipped three women - the Virgin Vesna, the mother Živa and the old woman Morana. These archetypes represent birth, maturation and withering, spring, summer and winter. According to the ancient Slavs, the personification of spring took the form of a lovely Vesna - unfettered girl, cheerful and full of life, ethereal, with tousled hair, in a light dress. This virgin takes over the reign from her eldest sister - the freezing and barren Death Morana. It banishes winter, brings green vegetation, therefore it owns all the spring flowers. Her arrival is announced by the first spring storm, which occurs when the supreme god Perun looks in her eyes and drops his thunder axe in amazement.

The Slavs worshipped Vesna from the spring equinox to the summer solstice, not only through mysterious rituals in birch groves or wells, but also by simple dancing or flower wreaths.