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 - typically, one ounce of silver (abbreviated as 1 oz Ag, where "Ag" comes from the Latin word for silver, Argentum). Many of these have a Zodiac-inspired theme.
This coin is part of a series of oval-shaped Signs of Zodiac coins by the Czech Mint, and features Sagittarius.
The Mint says about it: Old star charts attribute the constellation Sagittarius to the form of a mythical centaur, half man and half horse, armed with a bow and arrow. Some see him as Cheiron, others as Fola - wise figures from ancient mythology and friends of the demigod Heracles. According to the teachings of astrologers, people born under the sign of Sagittarius tend to be optimistic or even idealistic. They are also confident adventurers who are always looking for new challenges. They are full of enthusiasm and so can sometimes appear arrogant or reckless. Another characteristic is their sincerity, which is sometimes so strong that it unwittingly hurts...
The unusual oval-shaped coin bears a coloured depiction of Sagittarius on the reverse side. No photographs or computer graphics were used as the basis for the colouring - the author of the coin, Asamat Baltaev, DiS., created an original watercolour painting for it. |