1996 100Y Gold Panda 15th Anniversary Varieties

The 1996 100Y 1oz Gold Panda 15th Anniversary is a very low mintage coin within the Gold Panda series.  The official mintage total is only 3,800 coins.  Given the widespread melting of gold pandas in the 1990's, the surviving population could be much smaller.

Two varieties of this coin have been identified.  I do not know if these are correlated with different mints or die lots, so if anyone knows, please let me know.  The difference lies in the position of the 1996 date.  One of the dates of oddly off-center under the temple.

It is not yet known which of these is more rare, but the very existence of two clear varieties make the 1996 15th a potential long term candidate as a scarce panda superstar.

1995 100Y 15th Anniversary Gold Panda  1996 100Y 15th Anniversary Gold Panda Centered Date Off-Center Date

2012 Philadelphia ANA Coin Show Pandas

The success of the Singapore ICF medals earlier this year no doubt lead to the issuance of medals for the Philadelphia ANA show.   By most accounts, demand for the Philly ANA pandas was stronger than for the Singapore offering.

Compared to the huge numbers of Panda coins produced by the mint in recent years, the low mintages of these medals make them an especially appealing way to get in on the ground floor of a relatively scarce issue.  In addition, the medals are especially appealing to American collectors due to the Liberty Bell depicted on the back.

2012 Singapore Show Pandas	Mintage
1 oz Silver Panda	10,000
5 oz Silver Panda	2,500
1/2 oz Gold Panda	N/A
5 oz Gold Panda	99

This is a rare opportunity to acquire some very special low mintage pandas.  Once the the modest quantities are sold out, prices are likely to rise.