Now on its third incarnation, Egyptian Symbols is a superb series of high-end silver coins taking iconic elements of Ancient Egypt as its subject. Produced by Numiartis in conjunction with CIT, they’re also responsible for the Mythical Creatures series like the Vampire, and also the brilliant Ares coin that will surely be mixing it up as one of the best releases of 2017. This years Egyptian coin is employing CIT’s outstanding SmartMinting technology for the first time and the results speak for themselves.

Like the previous two, the 2016 coin is struck in three ounces of fine silver and has an antique finish. The subject of this coin has long expanded past Egyptology and entered popular culture, Winged Isis. The design is, in our opinion, beautiful. A combination of aesthetic design, technical excellence and quality finish, this is a new high for a series already at the top of the game. The reverse depicts Winged Isis on a stone pedestal replete with hieroglyphics. In the background are walls of symbols akin to a large temple or tomb. A border carries the series and coin name, along with the date and a selection of hieroglyphics common to all the coins. SmartMinting has been employed to facilitate levels of high-relief not previously attained, giving the artwork an impressive depth of perspective. The gilded Isis figure has been given a black colour wash to simulate aging and it works perfectly.

The obverse has the same border as the reverse and the same emblem of Palau present on earlier coins, along with the denomination. The main design on this face is new, but does contain elements common to prior releases.The pyramids, columns and Egyptian figures are all here again and look better than ever.

The coin comes in a fine wooden box with a themed outer shipper and an enclosed certificate of authenticity. Each of the first two coins had a companion piece released afterwards, a 0.5g minigold coin carrying similar reverse face artwork and we’ve no reason to believe that won’t be the case again. As we said at the beginning, these are higher-end coins, occupying a space alongside issues by such others as Art Mint, for example. As such expect a price around $395.00. Not the cheapest, but definitely one of the finest releases of the year so far and one that will be difficult to top. Available to order shortly, the coin will ship in July. Previous coins were the Ankh and the Eye of Horus.