SKU# OK133897E
2014 $5 Five Blessings with Chinese Symbol
of Wish for Good Fortune 1/10 oz. Pure Gold Coin
Specifications
Maximum Mintage – 2,000
Composition - 99.99%
pure gold
Finish - proof
Weight (g) – 3.14 (one-tenth
troy ounce)
Diameter (mm) - 16
Edge - serrated
Certificate – serialized
(serial numbers will vary)
Face value - 5 dollars
(a legal tender Canadian coin)
Artist - Susanna Blunt
(obverse)
Description
Blessings are an
integral element of Chinese culture. In offering them with a coin, medal, or
other traditional method of well-wishing, the giver expresses to the recipient
a wish or hope for their future happiness.
Written and spoken
Chinese lends itself particularly well to symbolism and double meaning. Through
the graphic symbols of the written language and the overlap of similar-sounding
words, the culture has evolved a tradition of employing letters, sounds, and
images to convey robust messages with amplified meaning. These messages are
readily understood within Chinese and Chinese Canadian culture.
This coin features a
beautifully colored and engraved design conferring upon its owner blessings of
happiness, success, long life, joy, and good fortune.
Special features:
·
This proof-quality
1/10-ounce coin of 99.99% pure gold features a beautifully engraved design
conferring upon its owner blessings of happiness, success, long life, joy, and
good fortune.
·
A very limited mintage
of only 2,000 means that this coin is sure to be sought after by collectors for
decades to come.
·
Makes a thoughtful gift
or fine collectible.
·
Limited worldwide
mintage.
Design:
This coin features a
series of symbolic images representing the traditional Five Blessings of
Chinese culture. In a polished crescent on the left side of the coin appear
five animals that traditionally connote blessings. These include a bat for happiness, a deer for
career success, a crane for long life, and two magpies for joy. The right side
of the coin is richly decorated with circular imagery overlaid with the Chinese
symbol used to offer a wish for good fortune.
Packaging:
Each coin is
encapsulated and presented in a Royal Canadian Mint-branded maroon clam-shell
with a black beauty box.
Did you know…
·
The character for
"good fortune" is not a formal or spoken word, but rather an ideogram
used in some regions to convey a wish or hope for good fortune.
·
The number "5"
is considered to be of imperial significance and auspicious in Chinese
tradition because of the central position of the 9 single digit numbers.
"5" is usually used as the number for repeated designs or decorations
used in the imperial court of China.
·
The concept of
"prospects" and the word for bat (fu)
are homophones in spoken Chinese. The bat has thus become a well-known symbol
for "good prospects."
·
The notion of success,
particularly emolument or success related to one’s salary, is homophonic with
the word for deer in spoken Chinese (lu).
The deer is thus used to connote the qualities of endurance, longevity, and
grace that provide one with a positive position in life.
·
The crane has long been
associated with the notion of longevity in Chinese tradition. In art and
literature, it is often portrayed in the presence of elders and gods and its
white feathers recall the white hair of old age. As a long-lived bird with high
status in Chinese imperial tradition, it is an ideal symbol for longevity.
·
The word for
"joy"—xi—is the first sound
in the word for "magpie" (xi
que), making the magpie a symbol associated with luck and happiness. When
two magpies are portrayed facing one another, as on this coin, the recipient’s
happiness is doubled
Shipping & Handling
Fast, free shipping
& handling to USA via USPS First Class Mail!
USPS Priority Mail &
Priority Express Mail (one business day delivery) are also available for an
additional charge.
We ship to many international destinations worldwide.
