Palladium coin
As palladium coins are coins of the noble metal palladium (Pd), respectively. Unlike gold, silver and platinum coins, they have only been minted since 1966. Palladium coins are issued either as investment coins or as commemorative coins for collectors.
history
In 1966, the African Republic of Sierra Leone produced 100 coins from palladium from a commemorative issue in gold . The first “official” minting of a palladium coin was realized by the Kingdom of Tonga , which issued commemorative coins of ¼ Hau, ½ Hau and 1 Hau made of the precious metal for the coronation of its King Taufaʻahau Tupou IV .
A year later, palladium coins also from Tonga appeared with the appearance of the 1967 edition, but with a small stamp next to the picture of the king, which indicates the king's 50th birthday.
It was not until 1987 that the next palladium coins appeared in France , Portugal , the Isle of Man , the Bermuda Islands and again Tonga.
There are also Pd coins from France from 1988 and 1989. The “ Statue of Liberty ” commemorative coin with the year 1986 was not issued until 1989.
From 1988 to 1995 Russia minted 25 different Pd coins as investment coins (ballerinas) and commemorative coins. Portugal added a palladium coin to its Portuguese Discoveries program in 1987, 1989, 1991 and from 1993 to 2000, and Australia minted the emu as an investment coin from 1995 to 1998 .
There are also palladium coins from Samoa (1988) and Switzerland (1989/1990).
When the price of palladium rose sharply in 1999 and peaked in 2001 at around US $ 1100 per ounce , all countries gradually abandoned the minting of palladium coins and many coins were melted down for the production of precious metals.
It was not until 2004 that China ventured a new attempt at palladium minting with the issue of its Panda investment coin (alongside gold , silver and platinum ) in palladium. This coin had a circulation of 8,000 copies. The Isle of Man and the sovereign Indian tribe of Poarch Creek Indians in the United States joined in with palladium coinage in 2004.
From 2005 to 2007 and 2009 Canada minted the Maple Leaf investment coin in a comparatively large number of copies, in addition to gold and silver, and also from palladium.
In 2009 the Isle of Man issued a coin to mark the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall, weighing one ounce and having a mintage of 1000. In addition, 20 coins of double thickness (2 ounces) were minted.
Also in 2009, the Cook Islands issued a 1 ounce palladium coin as an order mint with the sailing ship “Bounty” as a motif.
In addition, there are mixed metal coins that contain palladium, or so-called bi-, tri- and quad-metal coins. The latter was first issued in 2007 as a coinage of the British Virgin Islands made of gold, silver, platinum and palladium.
Purity and weight
Palladium coins are usually made from pure palladium. The fineness is 999.5 / 1000. Only the first coinage from Tonga from 1967 had a fineness of 980/1000 and the French coins from 1986 to 1989 consist of 90% palladium.
The Palladium Maple Leaf has a fineness of 999.5 / 1000.
Palladium coins come in sizes 1/5 ounce (Isle of Man 2004), ¼ ounce, ½ ounce, 1 ounce, and 2 ounces. One ounce weighs 31.1 grams.
Palladium coins today
Since 2005, the interest of coin collectors in palladium coins has risen sharply. There are several reasons for this:
- The minting of investment coins from China and Canada has made the coins better known.
- The spot price for the precious metal showed a particularly good performance in 2009 compared to the other three common precious metals gold, silver and platinum.
- Russian coins in particular are increasingly sought after by collectors from Eastern European countries.
In Germany, palladium coins like platinum coins are currently subject to 19% VAT when purchased .
literature
- René Frank : A rarity: Palladium coins - why it is difficult to keep track of so few issues , trade journal “moneytrend” ( Vienna ) 02/2005, pp. 184–189
- René Frank : “ Palladium coin catalog 2014 ”, Regenstauf 2014, ISBN 978-3-86646-846-7