Silver Five Ounces 2016 Chinese Mythical Creatures - Dragon and His Nine Sons, Coin from Tuvalu - detailed information

The Tuvaluan Dollar is the currency of Tuvalu - a small nation in the Pacific Ocean. Tuvalu has never had banknotes of its own, and has been issuing coins since 1976; these circulate together with coins of the Australian Dollar, which is also legal tender in the country, and to which the Tuvaluan Dollar is pegged.

The Australian Perth Mint issues a large variety of non-circulating legal tender coins under the authority of Tuvalu. Some of these are in the silver five-ounce format (abbreviated as 5 oz). Strictly speaking, they are not bullion as they are priced at a premium and are targeted at collectors who appreciate them for their artistic merit and collectable value and not just for their precious metal content.

The Mint says about this coin:
According to ancient Chinese mythology, the dragon is symbolic of good fortune. In Chinese culture the dragon is said to have nine sons, each of whom was endowed with a unique supernatural power. Each of the son's characteristics resembled a different aspect of ancient Chinese culture, representing music or physical abilities, guarding or providing wisdom to those who kept them among their personal affects. These appear in many aspects of architecture as well as forming part of daily life such as embellishments on statues, houses, courts and incense burners in ancient China.