Mont-Saint-Michel
Silver
Cook Islands. 10 Dollars 2023. Silver .999. 2 oz. 38.61 mm. Proof. Mintage: 1,000 pieces. Special technology: smartminting® (Ultra High Relief) with partial color application. Minted by B. H. Mayer’s Kunstprägeanstalt, Munich.
Cook Islands. 25 Dollars 2023. Silver .999. 5 oz. 65 mm. Proof. Mintage: 500 pieces. Special technology: smartminting (Ultra High Relief) with partial color application. Minted by B. H. Mayer’s Kunstprägeanstalt, Munich.
Copper
Cook Islands. 1 Dollar 2023. Copper. 50 g. 38.61 mm. Proof, Antique finish. Mintage: 5,000 pieces. Special technology: smartminting (Ultra High Relief). Minted by B. H. Mayer’s Kunstprägeanstalt, Munich.
Gold
Cook Islands. 5 Dollars 2023. Gold .9999. 0.5 g. 11 mm. Proof. Mintage: 5,000 pieces. Minted by B. H. Mayer’s Kunstprägeanstalt, Munich.
Description of the Mont-Saint-Michel Coin
Silver and Copper
The concave obverse depicts the island of Mont-Saint-Michel, surrounded by the sea, from a bird’s eye view. In the background, a stylized glass window with the inscription MONT / SAINT MICHEL / 1023-2023.
The reverse features a sketch of Mont-Saint-Michel, with the silhouette of a couple in front of it. In the left field a map of France with the location marked, above the portrait of Elizabeth II, below IRB (= Ian Rank-Broadley), above the circumscription ELIZABETH II COOK ISLANDS, below nominal. On the rim a description of Mont-Saint-Michel.
Gold
One side depicts Mont-Saint-Michel from a bird’s eye view on a stylized glass window, above MONT / SAINT / MICHEL, below 1023-2023. The other side features a portrait of Elizabeth II, below IRB (= Ian Rank-Broadley); around it the circumscription ELIZABETH II COOK ISLANDS 5 DOLLARS.
Background
You need to hold the “Mont-Saint-Michel” in your hand to really appreciate the high level of minting craftsmanship that has gone into this numismatic work of art. Against a deeply concave background, the legendary fortress of the archangel Michael is depicted in three-dimensional relief. The coin depicts every detail of the monastic island, which – in the image – has just been closed off from the mainland by the tide. Anyone visiting the actual UNESCO World Heritage Site would be able to use this commemorative coin to identify every single house, tower, and rock depicted in its cityscape.
It is said that the archangel Michael himself commissioned Bishop Aubert of Avranches to build a church in 708 AD. For the location of his sanctuary, the commander of the heavenly hosts requested a lonely rock off the Norman coast, which is completely closed off from the mainland during high tide. Bishop Aubert obeyed and started building a monastery, which many generations of worshippers have continued to work on ever since. Today, Mont-Saint-Michel attracts around 3.5 million visitors every year. Its picturesque location and impressive architecture will captivate anybody who is lucky enough to experience this wonderful symbiosis between art and nature.
For all those who can’t ever forget Mont-Saint-Michel, CIT presents this new commemorative coin, which will be issued in four different versions. In addition to the copper and two colored silver versions, CIT will also be issuing a small gold coin that, despite its weight of 0.5 g, still appears almost monumental.
Further Information
www.cit.li/coins/mont-saint-michel-silver-2-oz
www.cit.li/coins/mont-saint-michel-silver-5-oz
www.cit.li/coins/mont-saint-michel-copper
www.cit.li/coins/mont-saint-michel-gold-0-5-g
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CoinWeek Podcast #155: Ultra-Modern Coins Take Over
Mobile phone users. Stream this podcast for free by downloading the podomatic app or subscribe to the CoinWeek Podcast on iTunes.
In this episode of the CoinWeek Podcast, Charles Morgan and Chris Bulfinch have a lively, interesting, and provocative conversation with Chang Bullock and Orlando Lorenzana of CIT, where we talk about how ultra-modern coins (or postmodern coins, as we call them) have taken over the contemporary coin market and how CIT’s innovations in color and coin minting technology are changing the game for private and sovereign mints.
You cannot walk away from this podcast without learning something about the way minting has changed–and has always been changing throughout the course of monetary history–and we hope it will give you a clearer picture of where we are heading.
