One of our favourite silver bullion coins of 2016, an opinion we don’t think we’re unique in holding, Scottsdales chunky five-ounce Egyptian Relics coin came out of nowhere and proved very popular. Done in the Egyptian hieroglyphic style and depicting Tutankhamun, the most famous Pharoah in modern times, the coin was issued for the African country Chad and followed up by smaller and beautiful issue in gold.

We’ve been repeatedly asked when the next coin is out and finally we’re pleased to say that here it is. Following closely the same style as Tutankhamun, this second release goes back in time just a short way to the previous ruler of Ancient Egypt, Akhenaten, and more specifically his wife, the enigmatic Nefertiti. Widely considered to be one of the more powerful female rulers of this powerhouse ancient empire, Nefertiti is firmly rooted in the modern conciousness because of the discovery of a quite sublime bust of the ruler found just over a century ago by German archaelogist Ludwig Borchardt. Currently located in the Neues Museum in Berlin, it’s considered an icon of ancient beauty.

Scottsdale have certainly grown rapidly into the role of a major producer of quality numismatics like the Biblical Series, “Vikings: Gods, Kings, and Warriors”, and the new Frazetta coins. Their bullion coin range has also expanded rapidly and Egyptian Relics is a prime example of the quality on offer. With a similar diameter to a one-ounce coin, the considerable extra weight has gone on thickness. Not only is the coin almost 12 mm thick, it has a hewn, chiselled finish. Combined with the design, it almost looks like a miniature artifact found in the desert.

The second of five in the Egyptian Relic series, this antiqued coin is another spot-on design. Fortunately, these are sold as bullion coins and thus are quite remarkable value compared to coins sold purely as numismatics. As an example, they work out at less than a third of the cost of the same mints Biblical Series on a per-ounce basis. The mintage is capped at 30,000 pieces and it should be available today from Scottsdale, JM Bullion, and APMEX amongst others. Great release from Scottsdale.