At long last it’s time for the big reveal and our World Exclusive first look at the first all-new issue from an all-new mint, and it’s been well worth the wait. With the classic gods of antiquity always being a hugely popular subject for numismatics, back to ancient times in fact, this coin has an audience from day one. Throw in beautiful artwork and a groundbreaking depth of strike and we think that when you’ve reached the bottom of this article, you’ll agree that this one is quite special.

Struck in three ounces of fine silver with an antique finish, Odin kicks off a the Legends of Asgard series from a name we’re sure you’ll be hearing a lot more of, the Choice Mint. We’ve seen the Olympian gods on coins of late from a few mints, but the Norse gods are arguably a more interesting bunch, and with Marvel Comics movies enjoying staggering success recently, with their depictions of Thor, Loki and Odin amongst others, it’s a great time to get them on some coins. Starting with the big daddy himself is a wise decision.

Issued for Tokelau, the coin is struck in what Choice calls ‘Max Relief‘ because they believe that comparing the strike of this coin with a standard ultra-high relief (UHR) coin is not realistic. They’re right. Not having a coin in hand we can’t measure the difference between the coins highs and lows, but with UHR coins topping out at under 2mm, this looks double that at least. An initial glance over the images has you wondering how that depth is even possible, approaching that of some of the many amazing Brass medallions issued in China by the Shanghai Mint which are actually cast, not struck. We discuss the coin itself throughout the article, but suffice to say we think this one is very special indeed. Integrity is important to us here and if we write it, we believe it. A very cool design, far different to the Perth Mints very stylistic and opinion-dividing Gods of Olympus coins, this classically styled piece is like nothing else out there. It’s a credit to the guys at Choice that they’ve launched with such an ambitious piece and pulled it off in style.

Packaged in a high-quality wooden box with an enclosed and numbered Certificate of Authenticity, the number on the COA is also laser etched into the rim of the coin, still quite a rare thing, but a nice touch we’d like to see more of. Limited to just 1,500 pieces and available from a select group of dealers, the coin is going to be a popular beast in our view. Available to order very soon, hopefully in the next week or so, this isn’t a coin that you’ll have to wait ages for as the Choice Mint made the decision to announce close to the availability date. It’s refreshing to see a mint do so much right for a change. Brilliant stuff. Well done guys.

Over the weekend we’ll post up an exclusive discount code for 4% off from one of the dealers selling it, and we’ll post up any from the others also if they wish.